Anything
by mewmewgodess
Summary: To be a child again...For just a day. For just a moment. The innocence, the joy, the carefree nature...When Itachi is turned into a child, the Akatsuki members realize a few things about themselves, and a lot about Itachi. Not crack. COMPLETE
1. Pein Knew

_**Anything**_

**Chapter 1 - Pein Knew**

Pein knew from the begining it was going to be a mistake to send Itachi and Orochimaru out together on a mission. Their coming from the same village could cause tension, and the way Orochimaru had eyed Itachi when the latter was first introduced to Akatsuki...It meant bad news. But they were short on members and the mission had to be done.

When Itachi came back without a partner, he had patiently explained to Pein what had happened. Orochimaru would no longer be part of Akatsuki. The Leader was aggravated and dismissed Itachi, giving himself time to think. It didn't matter that Orochimaru was gone, Pein never really liked him anyway, but he needed the ring back. **(1)**

For a while he let it be. He had the 'aoi' ring, which he gave to Deidara as he joined. He also had the 'san' ring, which passed from one of Kakuzu's partners, to the next, eventually belonging to Hidan. But after that one, he had no more rings to give, and an extra member. Tobi. Keeping up a childish antic, he incessantly asked for one.

Quickly becoming tired of Tobi, he sent out Itachi and Kisame to go retrieve the 'ku' ring. The one Orochimaru had taken with him. He had expected the mission to go well. Itachi had managed to deter Orochimaru once, he most likely could again, on top of that having the help of his teammate. He had expected no difficulties at all.

He sensed the two of them return and waited for them to bring back a mission report. He was surprised when only Kisame came into his office to give the report. He seemed a bit jumpy, but Pein didn't mention it.

"Orochimaru destroyed the ring." Kisame told him in conclusion. **(2)**

Pein sighed, "Understood. You can rest up for a couple days, but expect a mission soon after."

"Yes, Leader-sama."

"Kisame, where's Itachi?" He had to ask, usually Itachi was the one giving the report and Kisame would be skipping out on it, not the other way around.

"Oh! Just...In his room." Kisame kept his gaze steady but he was obviously nervous. Giving him a searching glance, Pein dismissed him from his office.

He was a bit upset by the loss of the 'ku' ring, but let it be. At least now he knew that Orochimaru wasn't carrying it around with him anymore. The only thing on his mind was why Kisame was so skittish during the report. There were a couple details missing, that was easy enough to notice. But what were those details, he asked himself. He figured it didn't matter as long as the two would be able to do the mission he had for them in three days.

It turned out that it did matter, and that they wouldn't be able to do that mission after all. Kisame came into his office early the next morning, completely dishevelled. His face was in an expression of utter panic and it took him quite some time to manage to speak, only after continuous prodding from the Leader.

"Kisame, what's going on?" Pein was sitting straight in his seat, wondering what the emergency was, and if it actually was urgent. He hoped it wasn't another fire in the base because of Deidara. Or another lost pizza delivery man because of Zetsu. Or another all out brawl between Hidan and Kakuzu in the middle of their small base.

"Itachi!" Was the thing that came out at first.

But this made Pein realize it just might be serious. Anything wrong with the Uchiha couldn't be small, especially for Kisame to freak out so badly, "What about Itachi? Is he alive?"

"Itachi is...Tiny!" Kisame spread his arms about a meter wide.

"What?" It was the only thing the Leader could think to say.

"He's tiny." Kisame repeated.

"I heard the first time. Does this have anything to do with your mission yesterday?" Pein asked, remembering his weirdness from the day before.

"Yes."

"And what do you mean by tiny?" He couldn't help but ask.

"He's short. Like, a kid."

"...I want you to tell me every detail of your mission."

It turned out, that on their way to Otogakure, Itachi had become sick. He'd started coughing up blood, and he was dizzy. Kisame explained that it wasn't the first time it happened either. Itachi had been sick for a while now, coming down with these attacks every so often. It rarely got in the way of missions. This time was the exception. Kisame had forced Itachi to spend the night at a hotel in Oto, telling him to recover. Forcing himself would do nobody any good, and it was pointless for Kisame to continue the mission with Itachi if he would be spending the entire time worrying about the other.

When he left Itachi at the hotel, he'd been sleeping. The attack was gone, but it had left him tired. Kisame hadn't been gone for long. He'd talked with Orochimaru, found out the ring was destroyed, and returned to Itachi. But when he did get back, Itachi was still sleeping. Kisame had been afraid that he'd gone into a coma. He checked his pulse and saw that it was normal. Orochimaru had told him to leave, or else be hunted down, so he knew that they couldn't remain there.

He tried to wake up his teammate, but was unable to. Itachi was too far gone. Kisame carried him back to the base. He was surprised that their return trip hadn't roused Itachi up from his slumber at all. He put Itachi into his bed and made his report to Pein. His worry for Itachi is what made him so jumpy during their meeting.

"I spent the night in his room, hoping that he'd wake up sometime during the night, but he never did. I fell asleep at some point, though, so I couldn't be certain. But all I know for sure is that when I woke up, Itachi was smaller than usual. Much smaller."

"Why was I not aware that Itachi was sick? And why on earth would you leave him alone at the hotel? Especially in Oto. Orochimaru was after Itachi, which is why he left in the first place."

"I wasn't aware of that part..." Kisame mumbled, "I thought he just left. As for not telling you he was sick, Itachi asked me not to tell anyone. He's been using medicine to hide it."

"I see. Bring me to him then. We'll see if we can wake him up." Pein stood up and went over to Kisame.

"I don't have a clue how this happened. I didn't leave him alone for long, and for someone to be able to get close enough to Itachi to actually do anything to him..." They left the office.

"We'll get to the bottom of this, Kisame." Pein assured him. He hoped so anyways. Itachi was one of his most efficient members, and certainly one of the least bothersome.

Luckily they avoided any other members, for they would surely inquire as to why their Leader was following Kisame through the base. They arrived in front of Itachi bedroom door quickly, and Kisame hesitated before opening it.

"Here we go..." He said to encourage himself. He and Pein entered the room. The lights were still off, meaning Itachi was still in bed. A candle was set up though, on the bedside table, giving the room a red glow. Kisame had used that light to be able to keep an eye on his partner during the night. Eventually he'd fallen asleep on the floor. When he woke up, he shined the light over his teammate who was curled up in a ball, the blankets clutched in small hands. His black, short hair had hung around his face.

Kisame picked up the light once more and used it to light his teammate. Itachi still looked the same as he did that morning. He heard Pein take a sharp intake of breath.

"Is this...Itachi? He's..."

"Tiny?" Kisame finished Pein's sentence for him.

Kisame leant forward and put two fingers against Itachi's neck, feeling for a pulse. It was still beating at a normal rythme. His face was competely rid of all stress, which was odd for the Uchiha.

"What the hell happened to him...?"

"I don't know! I left him alone for only a couple hours!" Kisame said in an exasperated tone.

"In Oto. Where Orochimaru is."

"You think Orochimaru could do this?"

"He know's a lot of unusual jutsu, and he's powerful enough to get near a sick Itachi."

"Yeah, but Orochimaru was with me at the time." Kisame pointed out.

"True...What about Kabuto?"

"He was gone at the time. But...Whoever the fuck did this, it better be reversable!" Kisame exclaimed.

"I'm sure...Itachi, wake up."

The child continued to sleep.

"I don't think that's going to work." Kisame told him, "I've tried it."

"Uchiha Itachi, you better wake up right now or else!" Pein suddenly realized that he sounded like an angry father, and stomped away, ignoring the grinning Kisame. He switched on the light in the bedroom, illuminating the room properly. Kisame blew out the candle and put it on the bedside table. They could see Itachi's child-like build now that the light was on.

"He's so adorable as a kid." This time Pein gave Kisame an odd look, the latter merely ignored it.

"I think we should hold a meeting to discuss this." Pein stated.

"How about after breakfast? I can smell Deidara's pancakes from here. There's maple syrup...Butter...And even strawberries! Itachi loves strawberries on his pancakes." Kisame closed his eyes and smelled the air. He had a good sense of smell, but even Pein could smell them, and he had to agree that they smelt good.

"Well..." Pein looked at the sleeping child, "We can have the meeting during breakfast. Everyone's together anyways."

"I don't know how I feel about leaving him alone..."

"He'll be fine, Kisame."

"But what if he wakes up and nobody's here?"

"He won't wake up. He's been out for so long, I'm sure he'll stay asleep for another hour at least."

"But-"

"No buts! There's no need to worry. It's Itachi after all. He'll be able to take care of himself even if he does wake up."

"He's just a kid!"

The two bickered for a short while, Pein seemed to have forgotten he was the Leader and could make Kisame do as he asked. Neither noticed onyx eyes open tiredly.

"Do I smell pancakes?" A small voice seemed to ask nobody in particular.

Both Kisame and Pein stopped talking and at the same moment looked at Itachi. He was sitting up on the bed, his legs beneath him, and one hand was holding the blanket while the other was rubbing sleep out of his eyes. His usual clothes was now much too big for him, and hung around his small frame. His ring was staying on his small finger only because of luck, and they saw that his nails were no longer painted purple. Kisame had only taken off Itachi's shoes and hitai-ate, so even his cloak remained on him. His hair was shorter, just reaching his shoulders. The lines that were usually under his eyes were now almost non-existent.

He got out of his bed and stood on the floor, the clothes pooling around him. His hands were holding onto the opening of the cloak, and pulled it around him. He bowed his head a little.

"Excuse me sirs, but where am I?"

Pein and Kisame looked at each other, and the latter hesitantly replied, "We're at the Akatsuki headquarters."

Itachi's brows creased together, "What's the Akatsuki?"

The two adults shared a look again. Pein chose to take the lead in this one, "The Akatsuki is an organization of shinobi from different nations that take on missions to help the small villages." He explained the Akatsuki in the most innocent way possible.

"But...Why am I here? And how did I get here?" Itachi inquired, looking from one man to the other.

"What's the last thing you remember?" Kisame knelt in front of him, so he could be at eye-level with him. He ignored the temptation to cuddle his child-teammate. Itachi really was adorable as a kid, especially with the oversized clothes on him.

Like the normal Itachi, the young Itachi had no trouble looking at him directly in the eyes, unlike so many others, "I talked with my mother for a little bit last night, then I went to bed."

Neither the Leader or Kisame spoke, both taking in the information. It seemed that not only had Itachi's body gone back in time, but his mind had also gone back in time. Pein decided to go along with it as he made up an answer to the child's questions'.

"We're friends of your father's and he told us to watch over you for a while, since he and your mother were going somewhere. He brought you here last night, while you were sleeping." Pein lied. Kisame sweat-dropped. There was no way Itachi would believe that, and he was right.

"My father has no friends. And nobody can move me while I'm sleeping." Itachi countered, giving Pein a distrusting look.

Kisame decided to take it into his own hands, figuring out a better lie that would better suit Itachi's life. He didn't know much about Itachi, but figured he could make something up better than Pein could, "We're acquainted with your dad, and he told us he gave you a drug to make sure you slept soundly. There's been a lot of fighting recently in Konoha, which you might have noticed."

"Yes, father said a war was begining."

"And it is. He told us to watch over you while he went off to fight."

"I see..." Itachi didn't sound completely convinced, but he didn't really seem to care, "Why am I wearing these clothes?"

Luckily they were saved from answering another difficult question, because Deidara's loud voice echoed throughout the base. "BREAKFAST!" Itachi looked at the door with an alarmed look on his face.

"That's one of our members, his name is Deidara. I'll go alert them of your presense and Kisame can help you figure something out with the clothes. You can come find us in the kitchen afterwards." This was Pein's way of telling Kisame to stall as long as possible while Pein explained to the others Itachi's condition.

"We'll meet you there soon." Kisame said, and Pein left the room, leaving him alone with Itachi. He brought his gaze onto Itachi, who was staring at him blankly. "Well...Let's see what we can do about your clothes." But he didn't move. He didn't want to approach Itachi too much, knowing that he would normally never allow it.

Itachi looked down at the pool of clothes around him, "I think I can do something with this..."

"Do you need any help?" Kisame asked, and Itachi just shook his head. "Alright, I'll just go get myself ready, and I'll be back in two minutes. Is that okay?"

"Yes."

"I'll take the ring though, just to make sure you don't lose it. It was your ticket in here, that's all." Kisame took the ring from Itachi, and stood up. He grabbed the hitai-ate from the bedside table, and chose to bring both items with him. Just in case. The young Uchiha might be upset seeing his scratched off leaf symbol, and the ring was too precious to lose. "I'm off, I'll be back in two minutes." When Itachi nodded, he left the room.

He was still in his clothing from the day before. It wasn't really a problem, it was just that his cloak was dirty from the long trek back and forth from Oto. He went to his room, removed his cloak, and left it on his bed. He put Itachi's items on a dresser in his room. Samehada was leaning against the wall next to the door, but he chose to leave it there. He wouldn't be needing it. He gave some food to his fish, Glinda. Realizing there wasn't much else he had to do, he left his room and made his way back to Itachi's room. He could hear the loud voices of his teammates further away, and wondered how they were taking the news. Probably not very well.

Upon entering his partner's room, he was surprised to see Itachi waiting for him. The small Uchiha was sitting on his bed, his hands in his lap, and his legs crossed at the ankles. He looked at him as he entered the room, his face was its usual blank, but there was an unmistakeable curiosity in his eyes. Itachi got off the bed, and Kisame was quite impressed with what he'd managed to do with his clothing.

He still had on his usual black t-shirt, but he'd wrapped his white sash around his waist tight enough to make it look as if it almost fit. He still had his black pants on, but he'd used a kunai to cut off the extra length at the bottom, and he had found his hairband, which he was using to keep his pants from falling. He'd bunched the pants on the side and tied the elastic around it, tightening it around his waist. His bare feet made no sound against the wood tiled floor.

"Well, you sure did a good job." He grinned at the young Uchiha.

Itachi wrung his hands in front of him, and brought his gaze to the floor. It was the first time Kisame had ever seen him nervous, and found it was a bit refreshing, "Come on, kid, let's go see the others." Itachi nodded and went over to him. The two exited the room.

Kisame felt a tug on his shirt and looked down to see Itachi looking at him, "What is it?"

"What's your name?" He asked shyly.

"Kisame." He replied, and they kept walking. He was surprised that Itachi never let go of his shirt and walked close to him.

"Kisame-senpai, why are you blue?"

He laughed, and ruffled Itachi's hair. This just might be fun.

* * *

AN: Hello! (1) If you're reading this, I really expect you to be following the manga closely. If not, expect spoilers and a couple confusing parts. Any questions, feel free to ask! (2) I don't know what Orochimaru did with the ring, but I thought this would make a good answer.

Now, this story is actually already completed. It has ten chapters, which I'll be uploading about once a week, or maybe twice a week.

I have tried very hard to keep this story as canon as possible, and as un-cracky as possible. It's an emotional kind of Akatsuki-bonding fic. I know the idea of 'turning into a child' is prety much cliche, but I wanted one that was plausible and not just humour. I wanted one that made sense, and so I wrote this! I hope you enjoy reading this! I certainly had fun writting it!

Thanks for reading! Reviews are appreciated!  
-MewMew


	2. Konan Understood

**Chapter 2 - Konan Understood**

Konan understood that something was seriously wrong the moment Pein entered the dining room. Six of the members were already seated, the only missing were Pein, Kisame, and Itachi. **(1) **She knew that the last two came back from their mission the day before, and it would be normal for them to miss out on breakfast that morning. And the Leader often chose not to eat.

But the - more than usual - stern expression on Pein's face as he came into the dining room told her that he had something important to say. She didn't know how, she guessed woman's intuition, but she understood that something was very, very off. She stood up from her seat, on the right of the head seat, and her gaze stayed on the Leader.

"What is it?" She asked him.

He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck in a way that Konan could read as, 'I'm getting too old for this'. It worried her. Her voice and action made the other members draw their attention to their Leader, they started to understand that something was going on. They waited for Pein to take his seat, and he gestured for Konan sit back down.

Though the smell of the food was powerful, and making all of them hungry, they didn't touch the food. There were plates at Kisame and Itachi's seat, for when they chose to show up. On his left there was, Zetsu, Kakuzu, Itachi's empty seat, and Hidan. To his right was Konan, Sasori, Kisame's empty seat, and Deidara. His eyes travelled from one member to the other, before he finally spoke up. He knew he didn't have much time to waste.

"I have something to discuss with all of you. I need all of your full attention."

"Can't it wait until after breakfast? I'm fucking starving." Hidan complained, and it was obvious he wasn't the only one who felt that way.

"No! I don't have time to waste. You need to know what's going on right now. Something has happened to a fellow Akatsuki members and you must be aware of it before you see him." Pein said.

"Who? Itachi or Kisame?" Sasori asked.

"Itachi."

"Oh? What could of possibly happened to the great Uchiha, yeah?" Deidara's voice was almost giddy, and his grin showed his pleasure at the thought of something bad happening to Itachi. His pride was still bruised from his forced enrolment into Akatsuki.

"The two's last mission consisted of them going to Oto. During their stay, Itachi had a moment of vulnerability," Kisame had begged Pein not to say that Itachi was sick, "And during that time he was hit with an unfamiliar jutsu. Kisame and I suspect one of the Orochimaru's accomplices did this, since he seemed to have an unhealthy obsession with Itachi. This jutsu had an...Odd effect. We don't know how long it'll last, or if it'll go away at all. We were hoping somebody here could recognize it." Pein explained.

"Itachi had a moment of vulnerability, yeah?" It seemed to be the only part that registered in Deidara's mind. The other members though, listened to the rest.

"What's the effect of the jutsu?" Konan asked, though she didn't think she wanted to know. Even the others looked edgy. Itachi was always a picture of perfection within the Akatsuki, for him to get hit with some unknown jutsu, he must have really been handicapped. And the way Pein spoke of the effect, they weren't sure they wanted to see it for themselves.

"His mind and body have been brought into the past. He has been reverted to his, I'm guessing, four year old self."

"What the _fuck_?" Hidan voiced for all of them.

"What do you mean four year old?" Konan exclaimed.

"But, why?" Sasori asked.

Pein raised a hand to silence them, "He is a four year old. Maybe three. But what Kisame and I have managed to figure out, is that he doesn't remember anything about being older. We told him that his father brought him here to keep him safe during the Third Great Shinobi World War."

"But the Third War was seventeen years ago." Kakuzu said.

"Because that's where his mind is. He was brought back to his childhood. By your reactions, I'm guessing that none of you have ever heard of this type of jutsu before."

"Hell no!" Hidan said.

"Why would anyone create this kind of jutsu? **It seems rather pointless to me**." Zetsu stated.

"It isn't pointless, and there's no doubt this is one of Orochimaru's jutsu's. It failed though, obviously." Sasori replied.

"Explain." Pein told him, wanting more details. Sasori had once been Orochimaru's partner and knew him quite well. If anyone would know the point of his jutsu's, Sasori would.

Sasori crossed his arms over his chest, his face set in a bored expression, "Orochimaru had an intense desire to live forever and to learn every jutsu. Using it on Itachi was both revenge, and an experiment. The jutsu worked in a sense, it did bring the body back to a fit state, but by bringing the mind with it, it made the jutsu counterproductive."

"I don't get it. What the fuck was he trying to do by making himself a kid again?" Hidan asked.

Sasori sighed, but tried to explain it using more simple terms, "Orochimaru knows he can prolong his own life, but that some day his body is going to stop working. Time destroys the body. He was probably hoping that with this jutsu, he could make his body young again. But if his mind goes young again also, then he would forget all the jutsu he's ever learned, rendering this jutsu useless. Since this is an experiment, the jutsu is probably just temporary."

"So we're going to be stuck with a kid in the hideout, yeah?" Deidara didn't seem very pleased at the thought, neither did any of the others.

"Unless anyone knows how to undo the jutsu, we'll just have to wait for its effects to stop."

"Kids are expensive." Kakuzu said, but Pein ignored him.

"Do we have to babysit? Because I am not babysitting a fucking brat. They're annoying and loud. I don't get how anyone could possibly want one of those fucking things." Hidan said.

"Hidan! Children are not things, and I'm sure your mother would be upset to hear you speak like that!" Konan scolded.

"Oi, bitch! Don't bring my mother into this!"

"We all know he was an accident. No mother could possibly want that." Kakuzu chuckled softly.

"Don't call me bitch, asshole!" Konan retorted, ignoring Kakuzu.

"Shut the fuck up, Kakuzu!" Hidan said.

"Calm down-" Sasori started, but was interrupted by Konan.

"Shut it puppet boy!" She growled out, her anger in full swing now. A couple of paper airplanes flew out of her sleeve.

"I was just trying to-"

"Everybody!" Pein's voice was loud and called for their immediate attention. Konan returned the airplanes to her sleeve, Hidan let go of his scythe which was leaning against his chair, Sasori and Kakuzu had remained calm and seated throughout the short argument.

"Are you guys done with the profanity's?" A voice asked. All of them turned to look at the entrance to the dining room to see Kisame with an annoyed look on his face. When their eyes finally went lower, they saw a small child clinging to Kisame's shirt, hiding behind him. Itachi peered around him to look at the Akatsuki members, his eyes wide with fright and curiosity. One of Kisame's hands was on the child's head to sooth him a little.

"Oh my God! He's so cute!" Konan squeeled, giving all of the Akatsuki members a fright. She stood up from her seat, she held her hands over her chest, and her face was one of glee. She loved kids. She went around the table and went over to Itachi. "Hello, Itachi!"

Kisame was too surprised by her sudden joy that he didn't realize what her next move would be until she did it. Konan pulled Itachi into her arms and picked him up. She put one arm around his knees and the other behind his back. Her smile was bright as she just stared at Itachi. The child didn't really know how to react, and smiled hesitantly. This made Konan giggle, and the other members just stared at them in shock. None of them, including Pein and Kisame, had ever seen Konan this gleeful and Itachi smile.

"Uh, Konan, maybe you should put him down." Kisame said uncertainly.

She looked truly upset at those words, "But...I guess..."

Itachi stared at the two of them, and chose to speak up, "It's okay, Kisame-senpai, if she wants to..." He said shyly.

Konan's face immediately brightened, "Aw! He calls you Kisame-senpai!" She hugged Itachi. Tightly.

"K-Konan-senpai...I can't breathe." Itachi said.

She giggled, and placed him again so she could look at him in the eyes without having to put him down, "Sorry! You don't have to call me senpai though, just Konan-chan is okay!"

"Come on you three, it's time to eat." Pein told them.

"I didn't make this food for it to go cold, yeah!" Deidara added.

"Alright." Konan went to Itachi's seat and put him on it. It was evident she didn't really want to let go of him though. Once on the chair, he sat on his knees and was just able to see over the table. Konan and Kisame went to sit at their respectful places.

Pein began to eat, and so the others followed suit. Everybody's eyes remained on Itachi. It was too different to see him as a child. He was as silent as he always was, but this silence seemed more out of shyness than actual want of it. His eyes stayed on his plate, and he didn't do much. Konan and Kisame smiled upon seeing his pleasure at the strawberries on his pancakes. Though he didn't say anything, his eyes showed it all.

Only after a few seconds did Kisame realize that introductions hadn't been made, "Itachi," He got the Uchiha's attention. The others pretty much ignored him. There was always a surprising amount of conversation when they ate, though most of it was an argument of some sort, "I'd like to introduce you to the Akatsuki members."

Kisame went over all of them, he started with Pein, whom Itachi had already met. Itachi was to call him Leader-sama, and he went around the table. There was Zetsu, Kakuzu, Hidan, Deidara, and Sasori that Kisame would let Itachi give whatever affiliation he wanted to them. He already figured that he'd be calling all of them 'Senpai' unless told to do otherwise. The members allowed themselves to be introduced, none of them saying much.

Itachi looked at them all with fascination in his eyes. He didn't ask any questions or say anything, it was obvious that he still felt uncomfortable around them. He was surrounded by a gang of people he'd never met in his short life, Kisame wasn't surprised by his shyness. Kisame would let Itachi adapt to the environment at the pace he was comfortable with.

"How old are you, Itachi-kun?" Konan asked him once the introductions were made.

"I'm three, and I'll be four in two months." He replied, bringing up his gaze to meet hers.

"What do you like to do in your spare time?" She inquired. Kisame understood what she was doing. It was the first time they could ask Itachi questions freely without being sent a death glare and being ignored. The chances were, he would actually answer them.

"I don't have a lot of spare time."

"What do you do anytime, then?" She rephrased her question.

"I train a lot with my father. I also talk with my mother often. She always has a lot to say."

Konan laughed softly, "I'm sure she does."

"Itachi, what do you think about art?" Sasori drew the Uchiha's attention to him, as well as Deidara's.

"He's too young to know about art." Konan whispered to the redhead who was seated to her right.

"He might have some idea. Besides, he's never answered me before and I've asked quite a few times." Sasori whispered back. He waited for an anwer from Itachi.

Itachi took a moment to answer, "My father says that art is pointless. That it doesn't help anybody." He replied.

"What?" Deidara said, enraged, "Art is not pointless, yeah!"

Itachi looked at him, frightened. He knew immediately that he'd said the wrong thing, "I'm sorry."

"Tch! Art is a bang!" The blonde emphasized his point by slamming his hand against the table, making a large thumping sound. The one's who weren't involved in the talk continued to eat, ignoring the way the table had shaken.

"Putting aside what your father thinks, what do you have to say about art?" Kisame asked him, his voice patient. He shot Deidara a glare, angered that the blonde had frightened Itachi.

"Um..." Itachi's eyes went from Deidara, to Sasori who continued to look at him patiently, and then to Kisame. "I don't really know what art is..." He looked down at his plate, and bit down on his bottom lip. He was upset that he couldn't answer the question properly.

"Art is a bang! A fleeting moment of beauty, yeah!"

"Art is an eternal beauty."

"So...Art is beauty?" Itachi asked.

"If you wish to simplify it, yes." Sasori replied.

"I thought I told you not to discuss art at the table." Pein said, his eyes hard.

"If you break another table it's coming out of your pay." Kakuzu added.

"Its always come out of their pay." Hidan pointed out.

"No more arguing." Pein said before anybody could retort. His voice was stern and had a tone of finality in it. It was clear that if another argument broke out he would be pissed, and an angry Pein was something that none of them wanted to deal with that early in the morning.

They finished what was left of the meal in silence. Once it was over, Kisame asked Konan to take Itachi out for a tour of the hideout. She was ecstatic at the idea, and Itachi didn't seem to mind either. The hidden message was clear - he wanted a word with Pein, without his partner there. The other members were free to stay if they wanted to, and they did. Konan went around the table and picked up the young Uchiha, and started talking to him excitedly. Itachi listened without saying a word.

"He knows how to walk." Kisame told her, but she ignored him. She left the kitchen without saying anything to them, she just kept on talking to Itachi. He sat back in his chair and looked at their Leader, "I'm not sure what to do with him." He admitted openly.

Pein crossed his arms and looked at the roof thoughtfully. If Kisame was hoping for him to have some sort of great plan, he was sorely let down, "I don't either."

"He's a three year old. Make him do three year old stuff." Hidan said with a shrug, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"That has got to be the smartest thing you've ever said, Hidan." Kisame leant forward, a grin on his lips.

"I try." Hidan said smugly, though he didn't really get it.

"Don't give him too much credit Kisame, it'll go straight to his ego." Kakuzu said.

"You always have to say something don't you, you fucking heathen?" Hidan snapped.

"He was only reminding us about your already over-sized ego, yeah." Deidara butted in before Kakuzu could reply.

"Shut your mouth, whore!"

"Make me, asswipe, yeah!" **(2)**

"There isn't supposed to be anymore arguing, remember?" Sasori reminded them, but he was ignored.

"Children!" Pein snapped, and, although quite insulted by the term, they settled down. Deidara and Hidan glared at each other, Sasori and Kakuzu looked annoyed. Kisame seemed to have not heard a word, he was so deep in thought. "Kisame, what do you think we should do about Itachi?"

"If Sasori's right and the potion is going to wear off, I was thinking that we could use the time until then to give Itachi a normal childhood. He could have, for a few days at least, the childhood he never had. The childhood none of us have ever had." Kisame explained.

"Since when are you sentimental?" Hidan snorted.

"Not everybody has the emotional range of a grain of salt, Hidan." Sasori said.

"So says the puppet." He retorted.

"Look," Kisame said, stopping another arguement from begining, "I'm just thinking that this could be a chance for Itachi to be happy for a little while. He never told me much of how life was for him as a kid, but I know it musn't of been easy for him. Since he's my partner, I'll take care of him and all, I just don't want you guys being hard on him. Keep in mind he's only three."

"What do you mean 'be hard on him'? **We're not...Monsters.**" Zetsu chuckled. It was the second time he spoke that morning, and it wasn't meant to reassure the fishman.

"First off, no eating him. Don't be mean to him," At this he looked at Deidara, knowing that his grudge against Itachi might make him say not-so-nice things to him, then turned to Hidan, "And avoid saying anything stupid."

"Why're you looking at me?" Hidan sounded offended.

"Don't say anything about him killing his family. That would traumatize the poor kid. And don't let him see any of your rituals either." He told him.

"Why don't you just take him away then, if you think he won't be alright here, yeah?" Deidara asked, he also sounded a bit insulted.

"We can't take the chance. Orochimaru is going to be after him." Pein answered this time.

"Just keep the kid close to you and you'll be sure that no problems will arise." Kakuzu said in a silent threat. He wouldn't have a three year old bothering him when he had important things to do.

"Keep your temper under control and there won't be any problems." Kisame reciprocated.

"I'm sure with Konan pampering him like that, he won't have the time to be a bother to anybody." Sasori smirked.

"I think she's enjoying this a little too much, yeah." Deidara said.

"Konan's always liked children." Pein said in a way of explanation.

"Way to point out the obvious." Hidan said, earning himself a half-hearted glare from their Leader.

"As long as he returns to normal, that's what matters. Itachi is a good member in this organization." Pein stood up and left the room without saying another word. The remaining members watched him leave. They knew he was right. Zetsu got up and left too, having only stayed to hear what Pein would say. Kakuzu stood up, grabbed some of the plates and brought them into the kitchen. There were two exits in the dining room, one leading back out into the hall that brought to the other parts of the hideout, and one that led to the kitchen. Kakuzu made his way there because it was his turn to do the dishes.

Hesitantly, Deidara turned to Kisame, "Do you think...We could make Itachi laugh, yeah?" His face was deffiant though, pretending that he didn't really care to hear the answer. Even Sasori and Hidan looked at the fishman with obvious curiosity.

Kisame grinned, "Maybe with a little help we could make it happen."

"Really? He's always so depressing, it'd be nice to see him laugh for once, yeah." Deidara smiled and his eyes brightened.

"Fucking pansy." Hidan got up and picked up some plates.

"We all know you'd like to hear him laugh too Hidan, you can stop pretending." Sasori said knowingly.

"Yeah, right." Hidan sneered, but they could see through the lie. "We're criminals, we're not supposed to be all smiles and laughter."

"No, you're right." Sasori agreed, earning him confused looks from Deidara and Kisame. They thought Sasori was on their side, "That's a three year old's job."

Hidan said nothing and left the room. Kisame also excused himself, saying that he would go find Konan and Itachi. Deidara and Sasori remained seated for a minute. Suddenly the former pushed back his chair, but instead of getting up, he crossed his arms and looked down at his feet.

"What is it?" Sasori asked, his voice didn't show any curiosity, but that's because he hid it well. He'd grown used to his brat of a partner and didn't like it when he went into a silent state. It meant he was thinking hard about something that truly troubled him. The silence was too different from the annoying blonde he was used to.

"Itachi gets more attention than he deserves, yeah." Deidara looked at Sasori, a fire in his eyes, but nothing else showing in his features.

The two had gone over the subject of Itachi a lot, mostly because Deidara kept bringing it up. Sasori knew how the blonde felt about Itachi, knew how his pride had been bruised. He knew how the thought of the Uchiha pestered him all the time, which is why he shook his head at the comment.

"Deidara, I'll only say this once." Deidara knew Sasori was serious from the use of his name, and listenend intently to what his partner had to say, "Itachi really doesn't get that much attention. You just think he does because you spend all your time thinking about him. If you took a good look, you'd see that he's treated the same way everybody else is. He actually gets less attention than everybody else because he stays under the radar."

"But..." He tried to argue, but the intense look in Sasori's eyes stopped him.

"Take a look around Deidara. Itachi is the only person here who doesn't get any special treatment. Zetsu has his greenhouse and is given his own special food, Kakuzu was given the full charge over the money, Kisame has been given permission to go to the beach and has his fish Glinda in his room, Hidan is allowed to do his rituals in the hideout and to preach on about his religion, I am always given enough supplies for my puppets, Konan has rights to do whatever she pleases, and you have a second room just for your sculptures. Why do we have these things, Deidara?"

"I don't..." Deidara felt like a deer caught in headlights. He kept his eyes on the floor, convinced that he'd see anger in Sasori's eyes.

"We are given all these rights because we ask for them, Deidara. We ask for them because these are the things we like, the things that make us, even though we aren't supposed to be smiles and laughter, happy. Yes, we're criminals, we left our villages behind, we kill people, but we are still happy. We may not show it, but we are. Even you've grown to be happy here. Are you happy, Deidara?"

Finally the blonde looked up at his partner. His voice was calm, but Deidara had expected his eyes to be different. He expected anger, disappointment, any kind of negativity, but there was none. The brown eyes were just calm and expectant. For the first time, Deidara realized how much older Sasori was, and just how young he was. He felt like a child being lectured by a father. A father who obviously knew what he was doing.

"Yeah, I guess I am." Deidara admitted. He should have felt embarassed saying it, but he wasn't. Because now he knew he wasn't the only one. He wasn't the only person here who was happy to be in the Akatsuki.

"Does Itachi ask for anything?"

"No..."

"Why?"

"Because he doesn't want anything, yeah...?" Deidara answered, though he really wasn't sure if it was the right answer. He'd never thought about it before, and he doubted anyone besides Sasori, and perhaps Kisame, have.

"To be honest, I don't know for sure. I have two guesses, though, and I think they're pretty good. The first being, Itachi doesn't like attention. This I am sure of. I know it may seem hard for you to accept, but not everybody likes attention. Itachi is three years old and already being trained to fight by his father, he most likely had the full attention of his parents and clansmen thoughout his whole childhood. Itachi's probably sick of the attention and just wants to stay under the radar, which he has succeeded in doing."

"But a parent's attention is a good thing, yeah!" Deidara countered. He remembered being young and doing whatever he could do get his parents' attention.

"We're not talking about hugs and kisses here, Deidara. At the age of three Itachi was being trained to fight. To kill. At three he was already his father's tool. He was hailed as a genius from birth. And that's all he was ever seen as. He was never a child, a kid, he was just...A genius. That's not really the attention a three year old wants."

"I guess...But how do you know this, yeah?" Deidara asked.

"A lot of observation. I've gone on a lot of missions with him in the past. Also...Don't forget kid, I'm actually thirty-four years old. I know a lot about these things." Sasori stood up from his seat, picking up both his and Deidara's plates. He started to make his way out of the room but stopped when Deidara spoke to him.

"That's really...Sad, yeah."

Sasori turned to look at Deidara. He could tell that he'd really made Deidara think, for which he was glad. He hadn't said all that for the brat to brush it aside. "Yeah, a little." Sasori agreed.

"Oh, Sasori-Danna, what's the second reason, yeah?" Deidara asked.

"Right." He suddenly remembered that he hadn't even finished what he'd been saying, "The second thing, I'm not really certain of it, but I have a feeling it's a very good guess. If Itachi could ask for anything in the world to make him happy, I don't think he'd know what to ask for. He grew up shrouded in darkness...I don't think even he knows what could make him happy."

Now he left the dining room without being stopped. With one last glance over his shoulder, he could see that the blonde was looking up at the ceiling deep in thought. His hands were clenched on his lap, and there seemed to be the usual fiery passion in his eyes that Sasori was used to seeing. But this time, not even he knew why it was there.

* * *

AN: Here is chapter two of _Anything_ I hope you enjoyed reading it. I had Itachi call them 'senpai' because I figured he was raised to use the proper terms, and since he's a kid, everybody is his elder. As for...(1) Since Tobi's technically not a member, he wouldn't be invited inside the main hideout, so that's why he doesn't appear for a while. (2) I made this story around one year before Shippuuden started, so Itachi's twenty (as an adult of course).

I am honestly surprised by the positive feedback I've received from the first chapter, and I hope nobody get disappointed by the next chapters to come! I hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Thank you for reading!  
Please review!  
-MewMew


	3. Kakuzu Thought

**Chapter 3 - Kakuzu Thought**

Kakuzu thought that a child in the organization was a stupid idea. No, he didn't think it, he knew it. But this was Itachi after all, the powerful Uchiha who had killed so many without batting an eye. They couldn't just do away with the kid. Kakuzu knew he'd have to just accept it. There was no choice in the matter. Pein was right. Itachi was important to the Akatsuki. After all, Kakuzu was the one who counted all the money, and aside from Pein's income, and the cash from his bounty hunting, Itachi brought in the most money.

But a three year old? In a hideout filled of S-ranked criminals? Kakuzu didn't think it a genius idea. He thought they should just get rid of Orochimaru, he was a threat to the Akatsuki anyways, and then send away Kisame and Itachi. They could come back once the kid was back to normal. If that ever happened. Kakuzu suggested to Pein after he'd done the dishes that he get Sasori to take a look at Itachi, see if there was any residue left of the jutsu. Perhaps it was a potion used on him, one that Sasori could reverse. Pein had agreed, and had gone off to find the redhead.

He didn't know how well that was going. He was in his own room, where he usually was, and counted the money. His room consisted of a bed, a dresser filled with a bit of clothes, and a very large sewing kit. This was more for smaller jobs, like ripped clothing. For physical wounds his own thread did fine. There was also a writting desk, where he was currently seated. Papers were flowing all around it, on the floor, in the drawers, and all over the surface. Kakuzu held count of every penny spent in the Akatsuki.

A pen in hand, he was jotting down on a sheet of paper the recent incomes. The mission that Itachi and Kisame had gone on had brought back nothing, only a bad side effect. The ring that had been destroyed wasn't replaceable, and he wrote that down. There wasn't much else he could put down. He still had to do the usual check of the hideout to see what repairs needed to be done. There were always repairs, what with the members having short fuses. Himself included. After the first big fight he had with Hidan within the hideout, the costs of repairs had been so high that he almost had a heart attack. He avoided fights within the hideout after that.

Putting away his papers and pen, he stood up from his seat and exited his room. It was nearing one, and he didn't expect many people to be in the hideout. He was right to expect that. Sasori and Deidara had gone outside to train, Pein and Konan had gone somewhere, and Zetsu had gone to his greenhouse. Hidan was, though he didn't actually see him, probably in his room doing a ritual of some kind. Konan, most likely after a long talk and a lot of persuasion, had put Itachi in Kisame's care. Kakuzu found those two in the kitchen.

He wasn't surprised at all to see Kisame eating. That man ate enough to feed an army. Kakuzu hated counting the money spent on food. It almost hurt physically to see all those numbers adding up. But, he had to accept that at six-foot-four, the fishman had to have food. He scowled at the giant of a man as he entered the kitchen. **(1)**

Kisame was leaning against one of the counters, and Itachi was sitting on one of the stools next to the island in the middle of the kitchen. Kisame was talking to the child, and he in turn would put in words here and there to keep the conversation going. Itachi talked as much as he did as an adult, except at least as a kid he seemed to be enjoying the conversation.

"You shouldn't talk with your mouth full." Kakuzu said, interrupting the other man.

"Don't preach me about manners." Kisame grinned though, not taking offence. Nothing ever insulted him.

"Are there any repairs that need to be made in yours, or Itachi's, rooms'?" Kakuzu went straight to the point.

"Nope." Kisame said, after taking a bite of his sandwich. He enjoyed ticking off the other, but knew when to ease off.

Kakuzu's eyes went to the child seated quietly. Itachi's eyes met his, then went straight to the floor. He looked him up and down, then turned his gaze to Kisame, "He needs shoes." He pointed out.

"I know," Kisame frowned slightly, "He also needs a better outfit. I'm planning on taking him shopping later. It just depends if Deidara wants to come or not."

"Deidara?"

"He knows more about clothes than I do."

"I see...Don't spend too much." Was all Kakuzu said before leaving the room to continue assessing the repairs needed elsewhere in the hideout.

Kisame shoved the rest of the sandwich in his mouth, and stepped away from the counter. "Come on, Itachi, let's go find Deidara. He's outside with Sasori. I'm sure he'll want to come with us." He said after swallowing the rest of the food.

"Alright." Itachi jumped down from the seat and went over to Kisame. The two started walking over to the entrance. As the two walked passed a couple of the bedroom's, Hidan's door opened wide. He had finished one of his ritual, his cloak all covered in blood and dripping to the floor, made that obvious. He was on his way to take a shower to clean off.

"Hidan!" Kisame put a hand in front of Itachi's eyes. The child's face was a noticeable shade paler. The fishman's expression and tone showed clear anger towards the religious zealot.

"What?" The pink eyes looked at Kisame in annoyance, not even looking at the now-traumatized kid. Itachi hadn't moved an inch since Hidan's bedroom door opened.

"What did I tell you about your rituals? And Kakuzu's going to be pissed if you drip blood everywhere." Kisame turned Itachi away from Hidan, and picked up the shaking child. Itachi immediately wrapped his small arms around Kisame's neck, and burried his face in his neck, shielding his eyes from the gory sight. The fishman patted his back to help calm him down. He appeared calm, but inside he was also freaking a little. Itachi's fear of the blood and his clingyness was so out of the norm, that Kisame didn't know what to make of it.

"I did my ritual in my own damned room, prissy-pants, and I'm going to clean up after myself like I always do." Hidan said in disdain, "Pathetic." His eyes were on the young Uchiha. He started to walk away, heading towards the bathroom. **(2)**

"He's three you God-damned..." Kisame was too angry to think up anything insulting. He swore to himself that he'd make Hidan pay somehow, and continued his way out of the hideout. Itachi might feel better after seeing a bit of the outside world. Slowly the child stopped shaking so much, and he looked up at the fishman.

"I don't like him very much, Senpai." Itachi commented. His face was still a bit pale, his voice a bit shaky, but he seemed to be getting over the fear.

Kisame grinned at him, earning himself a small smile in return, and said, "Nobody does, kid. But you'll get used to him."

"I don't want to..." Itachi mumbled, leaning his head against the large man's shoulder.

"You don't really have to, either. You'll be spending most of your time with me, and probably Konan. She seems to really like you. Funny, I never really thought of her as a mother figure. I guess everybody's got a soft spot for kid's. But while you're with me, we'll have lots of fun together. I'm thinking of going to the beach tomorrow, or maybe after tomorrow. There's a really nice beach near here, and the waters are wonderful. There's just the right amount of salt in it..." Kisame continued to talk to Itachi. He was used to doing all the talking anyways, and wasn't disconcerted when nothing was said by the child.

Itachi found Kisame's rough voice surprisingly soothing, and it soon lulled him to sleep. He tried to stay awake, knowing that it's polite to listen when people are talking to you, but he couldn't keep his eyes open any longer, and fell into the temptation that was sleep.

Kisame exited the hideout to find that it was a perfect day to go out somewhere. There wasn't a cloud in the sky and there was just enough wind to keep cool. He followed the sounds of the explosions. Even from as far away as he was, he could hear Deidara's loud voice. Coming closer he could also hear Sasori's low droning. He entered the clearing, and was surprised that he didn't have to say anything to get their attention. Usually he had to yell over explosions to be heard. But today they seemed a little more alert. It probably had something to do with the fact that Pein had warned them that Orochimaru might come nearby.

Kisame doubted that the sound-nin would though. If Orochimaru had truly wanted Itachi then he would have taken him when he had the chance. The sannin already had Sasuke, he didn't need Itachi any longer. Kisame also figured that Orochimaru would know about Itachi's sickness, and that meant the Uchiha's body wouldn't be of any use to him.

"Hey, guys." Kisame called out to them. The two walked over to him, Deidara covered in dirt and Sasori back in his favorite puppet, Hiruko.

"Don't yell. You'll wake up the kid." Sasori told him.

"He's asleep?" Kisame was honestly surprised. He would of looked for himself if he could have. But Itachi was nestled right in the crook his neck, making him unable to move his head much.

"How did you not notice, yeah?" Deidara laughed at him.

"He talks as much awake as he does asleep." Kisame explained with a sheepish grin.

"Why are you here?" Sasori asked, getting to the point. He didn't like wasting time on conversation that lead nowhere.

"I came here to ask Deidara if he wanted to come shopping with me and Itachi. He needs some new clothes and I know you know more about that stuff than I do."

"Duh I know more about clothes than you do, yeah. You're about as fashionable as-"

"Don't start, Dei. I just want to know if you'll come. We're leaving now." Kisame interrupted the blonde.

"I suppose, yeah. Haven't gone shopping in a while anyways."

"Don't forget to bring me the kid later. I have to do the check-up that Leader-sama asked for." Sasori reminded the fishman. He'd agreed to check Itachi's blood for any type of poison, to see if the transformation was related to that.

"Yeah, I won't." Kisame promised. Suddenly, he felt the child in his arms stir. Itachi slowly opened his eyes, and pulled back to look up at Kisame, "How was the nap?" He grinned at the kid.

"I'm sorry, I fell asleep when you were talking." Itachi said softly, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

"Don't worry about it, kid."

"You should sleep more Itachi, you've got dark circles under your eyes. Those are going to be permanent unless you get yourself a few good nights of sleep, yeah." Deidara went close to Itachi, and rubbed his thumb under the Uchiha's eyes. He was almost worried about the same eyes he had sworn to hate.

Itachi didn't move away, but his discomfort was obvious by the way he looked away from the blonde, "I have a hard time sleeping." He mumbled. The words sounded like they were meant to convinve them, but of what, they weren't sure.

"Why's that?" Kisame frowned. He was aware that the Itachi he knew had difficulty sleeping because of his sickness, but for his three year old self to have that same difficulty...He hoped to maybe get some concrete answers for once.

But he wouldn't get them. The child just shrugged his shoulders and kept his eyes down at the ground. Kisame shared a look with his two fellow Akatsuki members, and they decided to just drop the subject. Perhaps Kisame would be able to get the young Itachi to open up more with time.

"Time for some shopping then, yeah! We don't have all day, so let's get going." Deidara broke the silence.

"You're right. Did you want to come Sasori?" Kisame asked the puppet.

"No."

"Alright then..." Sasori left the trio and returned to the hideout.

"He doesn't like shopping, yeah." Deidara said as a way of explanation. But Kisame had spent a lot of time in the Akatsuki with Sasori, and was used to him being passive. He didn't find it insulting in the least.

The three of them made their way to the shopping center. It was a decent sized place on the outskirts of the star village. There were small stores attached to each other, all kinds, from a place to buy food to a place to buy clothes. This shopping center is where the Akatsuki members usually went to buy whatever they needed. It wasn't particularly busy and the people wouldn't recognize them or their cloaks. They chose one of the clothing stores that seemed to have child sizes inside. But once near the door, Kisame stopped walking, making Deidara stop too.

"Here Dei, take the kid." Kisame held out Itachi, who seemed frazzled because of being handled like an object, to Deidara.

The blonde awkwardly took the child into his arms, not knowing how to hold him. "Why, yeah?" He asked, managing to put Itachi in a comfortable position in his arms.

"If anyone asks you're the father. You'll pass better than I can." Kisame grinned, showing his pointed teeth.

"I guess, yeah..." Deidara looked down at the kid with an uncertain look on his face.

Itachi looked at Kisame with clear confusion, "But that's lying." He said almost scoldingly.

"It's to keep you safe, remember? Besides, it's just a small white lie. It won't hurt anybody." Kisame continued walking towards the store, and Deidara followed closely behind.

They entered the store and made their way to the kids section. As soon as they saw the small clothing, they immediately felt overwhelmed. They stopped and looked at each other.

"I've never been in this part of a store before, yeah." Deidara said, looking back at the clothing.

"It's all so...Small." Kisame didn't even know where to start.

"Well, when picking out an outfit you have to start with the pants, yeah. It's easier to match a shirt with pants than pants with a shirt. Shoes always come last, yeah." Deidara went over to a row of pants and started looking through them, holding the Uchiha in one arm. Kisame laughed at how natural it looked.

The blonde looked at him with one eyebrow raised, "What, yeah?" He huffed, sounding annoyed.

"Nothing...Nothing at all." Deidara just rolled his eyes and returned to examining the clothes.

Itachi tugged on Deidara's cloak to get his attention. One he had it, he asked him, "Can I go down, please?"

Deidara nodded and put the child on the ground, "Just don't get lost, yeah." His voice was apathetic, but it showed in his eyes that he did care a little. His eyes were see-through when it came to his emotions.

"Thank you." Itachi said politely.

The child went over to Kisame, letting Deidara return to browsing. He tugged at the fishman's cloak, and he looked down at the kid. "Can I go look over there, please?" Itachi asked him.

Kisame grinned, "Okay, kid. Don't go too far though."

"Thank you." Itachi was gone in the blink of an eye. Kisame wasn't worried at all, he may be three, but he was still Itachi. He was sure the kid could take care of himself for a few minutes at the very least.

"What are you looking for?" Kisame asked Deidara. He didn't bother looking, he knew Deidara would tell him whatever he chose would be all wrong.

"I'm looking for some of those black pants that are good for training in. He seems to like those, yeah." He replied.

"But he won't be training." Kisame's voice was stern.

"Chill, Danna, I know. They're just comfortable, yeah." Deidara held out a hand towards him in a 'cool it' manner, and Kisame couldn't help but stare at the tongue that slid over the sharp teeth that were in the center of the hand. Suddenly Deidara let out a sound of exasperation, "I don't want him in black, yeah!"

"Then don't put him in black."

The blonde glared at Kisame, "I won't, yeah." He looked around, "Where's the brat, yeah?"

"He wanted to go look elsewhere, weren't you listening?"

Deidara just brushed aside the question. He went over to another row of pants and sighed, "I just don't see him in any other colours, yeah. I'm so used to seeing him in the stupid Akatsuki cloak, yeah."

"That's right, that's the only thing you've ever seen him in."

"Yeah...Wait, you've seen him in something else, yeah?" Deidara looked at the fishman with a surprised expression on his face.

"When he first showed up he was in his ANBU uniform, and he takes off the cloak to sleep. Whenever he actually sleeps, that is."

"What's up with that, anyways? I mean, you know him the best of any of us, do you know why he can't sleep, yeah?" Deidara seemed almost concerned.

"Itachi's extremely discrete, you know that." Kisame avoided answering. He knew some of it, and had been sworn to secrecy not to say that part, but he knew there was more to it. Kisame only knew that Itachi was sick, to what extreme and how long it had been going on, he was in the dark. The fishman knew pretty much nothing about the Uchiha's childhood.

"I suppose, yeah..." Deidara didn't sound convinced, but let it drop. He continued to look around. No matter what he pulled out from the rack he would look at for a second before putting it back. Kisame started to regret asking the blonde to come shopping with him. Sure, he may know the most about clothes but he was slow at choosing some.

It was a few minutes later that Kisame felt a tug on his cloak. He looked down and the sight of the young Uchiha almost scared him. Itachi had actually snuck up on him. Giving his heart a second to calm down, he took in what the child was wearing. It seemed he had picked something out himself. It was a red yukata, with black flowers forming intricate patterns. A thick, black sash kept the yukata firmly in place. It fit the child perfectly, ending at the ankles and wrists.

"Well, what do we have here?" Kisame mumbled, and crouched down to be at Itachi's height.

Itachi put his arms out to the side, to show the yukata better, "I like this. It matches yours." He smiled hesitantly, trying to figure out what the other thought of it. He didn't know if he did well or not.

"It sure does." Kisame grinned, "I like it too, why don't you show it to Deidara? I'm sure he'd love to see it."

"Alright!" Itachi was visibly pleased by the others response, and happily went over to the blonde. He pulled gently on the black and red cloak to get his attention.

Deidara looked down at Itachi to see what he wanted, and he couldn't help himself from smiling at the sight. "That's a really pretty yukata, Itachi. Where did you find it, yeah?"

"Over there." Itachi pointed off to the right, "Do you like it?"

"Of course I do," Deidara picked up the child and held him in his arms, "I'm guessing it's what you want, yeah?" He realized at that moment that that's exactly what he and Sasori had talked about that morning. He then realized, that Itachi would finally be getting something he wanted.

"If it's okay..." Itachi looked away, becoming shy again.

"You can have whatever you want Itachi, you're the one wearing it after all." Kisame said, coming closer to them. He'd been further away, watching Deidara shop, and being bored.

"Really? Thank you!" Itachi smiled for real, making the other two smile in return. It was different to see him smile, or be happy, and they found they liked it.

"Now, let's get you some shoes, yeah. You'll want some like ours, right?" Deidara asked, and they left the clothing area and headed towards the shoe aisle. Itachi bit his bottom lip, and slowly nodded his head.

It didn't take them long to pick out a pair of sandals for the young Uchiha. He wasn't very picky about what clothes he wore. Kisame got Itachi to take off the yukata so they could pay for it, and they went to the cash. Deidara held the child, while Kisame gave the objects to the cashier. The brunette scanning the items smiled at Itachi.

"What a beautiful child!" She commented.

Itachi looked at the floor, not saying a word. Deidara didn't know if he was supposed to say anything, and just looked around awkwardly. Kisame bit back a grin at both their discomfort, and handed the woman the money.

"Is he yours?" The brunette didn't seem perturbed by their silence.

"Uh, yeah." Deidara didn't sound very convincing, but she didn't seem to notice.

She handed him the bag with their items, and smiled brightly, "Have a great day!"

"You too, yeah."

The second they stepped out of the store Kisame burst out laughing, "You are such a kid, Dei!"

"I'm eighteen," He put a hand on Itachi's ear to make him unable to hear, the other was pressed up against his chest, "Asshole! I don't have any experience with children, yeah!"

"Well, now you will." Kisame grinned at him.

Itachi pushed at the hand against his ear, and pulled back from Deidara to see better. He looked at Kisame, "What's funny?" He asked. He didn't enjoy being purposely left out of the conversation, and it showed.

"I'm just laughing at Deidara's bad social skills, that's all." Kisame explained, unruffled by Deidara's glare. The blonde didn't retort, knowing that whatever came out wouldn't be suitable for kids. And the fishman couldn't help but comment on it, "I'm surprised you care about watching your language around younger audiences." He formed the phrase so as to not make it seem like he was directly talking about Itachi, but the child obviously knew it anyways.

"Innocence is art, yeah! It's fleeting...Only present in the youth of a life, disappearing the moment adulthood appears, yeah. It might as well be preserved while the chance is there."

"How poetic..." Kisame whispered to himself.

Itachi realized he would not be included in the conversation, and leant back against Deidara's chest. The blonde took notice of his annoyance. He walked off course a little and picked up a small flower from the side of the road. He gave it to Itachi, "Hear you go, Itachi. Do what you want with it, yeah."

"Thank you." Itachi said softly, taking the flower into his small hands.

Kisame looked at him confused, and he explained, "It'll keep him distracted, yeah."

"I see...Since when do you care about...?" The fishman's eyes went to the child. But he could have said the name. Itachi was ignoring them now. His attention was completely on the small white flower. His fingers going over the petals daintily, almost as if afraid to harm it.

Deidara shrugged, "I like kids, and well, Danna gave me a lecture about being nice to him, yeah."

"Sasori? He gave you a lecture?" The blonde nodded, "Well, that's a first."

"What do you mean, yeah?" Deidara asked. He'd only been in the Akatsuki for a year, compared to the thirteen that Kisame had been a member. Sasori had been a member for even longer, a complete fourteen years. There was no doubt in his mind that Kisame knew much more about Sasori than he did.

"Sasori's always believed that kid's are supposed to make mistakes and that they'll learn by themselves. He doesn't believe in giving advice. He's lived his life making mistakes and learning from them, and he thinks everyone should be like that."

"But, isn't that a good thing, yeah? To be independent and stuff?"

"Yes but...Sometimes not everybody can tell that they've made a mistake. And if you don't know it's a mistake, and you simply repeat it over and over, how are you going to learn? You see, that's where Sasori's philosophy doesn't quite work. Sometimes you need somebody to tell you what you're doing is wrong. And I think even he's aware of this. I don't know what he told you but, maybe he thought you needed to hear someone elses take on things."

"Maybe, yeah..." Deidara held on even tighter to Itachi, almost as if he were a safety blanket. The child didn't mind, snuggling even closer to the warmth of another person.

"You're never too old to learn. I think Sasori's finally begining to come to terms with the fact that the world isn't black and white. There are shades of grey too. And also...I think he has a soft spot for you. Before you came along, he didn't seem to care much about his art, it was just his way to fight. But now that someone's willing to contradict him and his art, he's more serious, about it. You reanimated something in him that had died a long time ago. You reanimated his passion for it."

Deidara looked like he was thinking about what he'd just been told. After a minute, he looked over at Kisame and for once saw, not the creepy fish-guy he'd first thought he was, or Itachi's partner as he'd learnt to think of him, or even a powerful Akatsuki member. He saw, another man with a lot to say. He saw, a friend. "Thank you, Danna, for telling me this, yeah." **(3)**

"It's no problem, kid!" Kisame patted the blonde head with a grin on his lips, and he looked down at his small partner. His eyes widened upon seeing him sleeping again, with one hand holding Deidara's cloak and the other his flower, "He's asleep again!"

"Is it normal for kid's to sleep this much, yeah?" He asked, "And I thought he said he had a hard time sleeping, yeah?"

"I don't know how many hours a kid is supposed to sleep, but maybe the lack of sleep is finally catching up to him." Kisame suggested.

"I guess, when's his bedtime, yeah?"

"I don't know. Whenever he's tired, I guess."

"What's usually the normal time for a kid to go to bed, yeah?" Deidara persisted.

"I don't know, maybe you should ask him when he wakes up. I'm sure he'll know. Why do you need to know anyways?"

"Well, if he's supposed to go to bed early enough, then we don't want him sleeping too much during the day. He won't be tired when bedtime comes, yeah." Deidara explained.

"Now I see what you're getting at. He'll wake up when we get at the hideout and we'll just make sure he stays awake for the rest of the day. Whenever he choses to go to bed, we'll agree to that being his bedtime. I'm sure he won't be hard to put to bed."

They soon reached the hideout. Once inside, Deidara slowly shook Itachi awake. The young Uchiha's eyes opened, but he didn't move, "I'm awake." He said to stop Deidara from continuing to try to wake him.

"Good, we're back at the base, yeah. You can get changed and then we'll have supper, okay?" Deidara crouched down and put Itachi on the floor. The latter slowly balanced himself, and let go of the others cloak.

When Deidara and Kisame left Itachi alone in his room so that he could change, he was still barely awake. But when they returned, he seemed more excited and ready to do something. They brought him into the kitchen. It was Kakuzu's turn to make supper, meaning it would probably be leftovers from the day before. Also in the kitchen was Konan. She sat at the island making paper swans out of a large stack of napkins nearby. When she was really bored, she would make hundreds of them, and they weren't allowed to throw them out for fear of Konan's anger. The paper swans would last them a month and then she'd do it all over again.

It kept her busy.

As soon as she saw Itachi again she 'awed', "He's so cute!" She said about his new attire. She invited him to sit next to her, and he did. She hugged him tightly, before asking him if he wanted to learn the art of origami.

"Origami is _not _art, yeah..." Deidara mumbled to himself, "I'm going to go see Sasori, yeah."

"Oh, wait! Sasori wanted to do the tests on Itachi. I don't know if he wants to do them before or after supper." Kisame said, "Sorry, Konan, but he's needed elsewhere. You can teach him how to do those later, or something."

"But..." She disappointedly let Itachi go. Kisame picked him up and quickly left the room with him, and Deidara, before she could say anything else. Konan looked at Kakuzu, "We were gonna have fun!"

Kakuzu just looked at her.

"What kind of tests is Sasori doing on Itachi anyways?" She asked him.

He chose to answer, seeing as it was a logical question and she was one of the few people he respected in the organization. "Most likely he'll take a couple blood samples and look at them for signs of poison."

"Why poison?"

"I believe he and Pein think that Itachi's transformation might have something to do with a type of poison. If it is, then Sasori will probably be able to reverse it. And also, the effect of some jutsu can be seen in blood. It's not an easy task, and must be done quickly, but it is possible. If it is a jutsu, and it was only cast yesterday, the chances are higher of finding something." Kakuzu explained.

Konan trusted what he said, and hoped for the best. Kakuzu finished up the supper while she finished making another couple dozen paper swans. She put one at each seat of the table that would have someone there, and helped Kakuzu set up the food. Unlike Deidara, he didn't yell out when the food was ready. Everybody knew that supper was at five-thirty when he was the one cooking, and it was their responsability to remember.

Nearing the aforementioned time, the members started entering the dining room. They sat at their respectful places and once five-thirty hit exactly, everyone was seated. Kakuzu took in the status of the other members. Pein looked stressed, but that was normal. Konan was calm, but she seemed more cheery than usual. Zetsu, well, he just looked hungry. Hidan was hungry and pleased, his last ritual had left him feeling both. Sasori looked shifty, his gaze going from Deidara, to Kisame, to Itachi. The first was glaring at Sasori, the second was staring at Itachi worriedly, and the last was looking at his plate, his face pale.

It was only about time that something happened, and Kakuzu was waiting for it. He just hoped it didn't cause another broken table.

"Stop staring at me, brat!" Sasori glared back at Deidara. Kisame leant back in his chair, to feel less in between the two.

The blonde just huffed and looked away.

"It wasn't my choice, okay. It had to be done." Sasori relaxed a little, but his glare remained.

"Why did it have to be done, yeah?" Deidara looked back at his partner.

"He's told you twice already." Kisame replied for the puppet.

"Oh, right...But we could of found some other way to do the stupid tests, yeah."

Now most of the other members realized what they were talking about. Kakuzu returned to eating his meal, letting them argue it out. Soon enough it would stop and they would start eating also.

"There's never any other way." Itachi's soft voice cut through the tense atmosphere. Kakuzu knew that this arguement would be shorter than it would have been had the child not spoken.

Deidara pouted, and mumbled, "There should be, yeah."

"Well there isn't." Sasori started to eat, as did Kisame. Soon enough, Deidara did too.

It was only after supper did he find out the reason for the tension. He knew it had something to do with the tests that Sasori had done on Itachi, but he knew nothing more. He hadn't asked during supper because he had a feeling that Deidara might get even more upset, and the blonde had blown up a lot of things in a fit of anger. These things included, the dining room table, the front door, the back door, one of Sasori's puppets, Hidan, Itachi's bedroom, and his own workshop multiple times. Kakuzu didn't want to have to do more repairs than necessary.

Once supper was finished he left the dishes for Hidan to do, and went into his room. He picked up one of his favorite books and went into the living room to read. His own room's lighting wasn't all that great, besides, the couch was much more comfortable. He sat reading his book for a good while, having no disturbances. At this time, most of the others were either in their rooms or outside. He also knew that Zetsu had been sent out on a mission right after supper. Kakuzu figured he was going with the annoying twerp that followed him around, the one that called himself Tobi.

Tobi was forced to stay elsewhere, and wasn't allowed to know the location of the hideout. He usually found it anyways. He would sometimes go on missions with Zetsu when Pein said it was alright. The Leader made it seem as if he were letting the brat get a taste of what being a member would truly be like. The truth was that if he sent out Tobi, it was because Madara was needed.

Halfway through his book, he felt somebody enter the room. He ignored it as best as he could, until that person sat next to him. His eyes shifted to his left to see who it was, and when he saw that it was just Itachi, continued to read.

"What are you reading?" Itachi asked him after a moment.

Kakuzu just moved the cover so the child could see it, it read '_Inferno_'. **(4)**

"Is it good?"

"Yes." He replied shortly, hoping that Itachi would take the hint that he didn't want to talk. The child didn't say anything, and just stared at him. Finding it tiring, he turned to him, "Why aren't you with the others?" Kakuzu remembered him leaving the dining room with Kisame and Deidara.

He hesitated before replying, "I left."

"They let you leave?" Kakuzu sounded almost surprised. He didn't think Kisame would let the kid out of his sight for a second.

"Well...I told them I had to go to the bathroom." He admitted his lie.

"And you're here because...?" Kakuzu continued to read, though he was curious as to why the kid lied.

"They always seem to be angry because of me...I thought if I wasn't there they wouldn't be angry anymore. I told them I was sorry. I don't want to be afraid of needles but...I don't like them, they hurt!"

Kakuzu then realized that what happened was probably that because of this fear, Deidara had tried to get Sasori to do something else, causing the tension between them. Itachi had been pale because of the fear and Kisame had been worried because, well, it was just in his nature to worry about his partner. Kakuzu had always thought he was soft, especially when it came to Itachi. But he never said so, because he knew Kisame could wreak havoc as bad as Deidara could.

The child's insecurity's almost made him laugh. The adult Itachi wouldn't be afraid of needles, first of all, but he also wouldn't give a damn if others were angry at him, or because of him. The child Itachi's fear made Kakuzu see just how much a person could change in a few years.

"Don't worry kid, they're not angry because of you. You'll learn quickly that the people here are always angry for all sorts of reasons. They'll all be fine in the morning, you'll see." Kakuzu reassured him, all the while keeping his gaze on his book.

"But why are they angry? Being angry isn't good..." Itachi, who had been kneeling and facing Kakuzu, sat down next to him instead, almost leaning against him.

"The people here are just angry at the world, kid. And, to tell you the truth, if they're a part of the Akatsuki, it's because they have a reason to be." **(5)**

"Oh..." Itachi sounded almost upset, his eyes went to his hands, which were resting in his lap.

Kakuzu sighed, "You can stay here until they come find you." He put an arm around the kid, letting him read with him. Itachi nestled up against him, pulling his knees up closer into him, and rested his head against Kakuzu's shoulder.

"Thank you." Itachi said, and for a reply, the other just grunted to show he'd heard. But it was enough for the child.

He still wasn't a great reader, and had a hard time following the book. Of course, it didn't help that Kakuzu was already halfway through it and that he was a fast reader. But Itachi was glad for the company.

It was an hour before Kakuzu looked away from his book. He first looked at the time, and saw that it was nine o'clock. He looked at the child and wasn't surprised to see him fast asleep. He'd read enough that night, and wanted to go back to his room to finish counting the money before going off to bed, but realized he had to do something about Itachi first. Accepting that he would have to bring the child back to his room, put away his book in the folds of his cloak.

He picked up the kid awkwardly, not knowing how to hold him. In all the numerous years of his life, he'd never held a child before. He held Itachi bridal style, and headed to the kid's room. He passed Kisame on his way, who didn't seem at all flustered like Kakuzu thought he'd be. Itachi had been gone for over an hour.

"Thanks for watching him, Deidara told me he was with you." Kisame explained.

"Hn."

"I can put him to bed if you want, although you seem to be doing just fine." Kisame grinned at him, and Kakuzu frowned.

"I'll do it tonight, but you keep an eye on the brat from now on." Seeing that the other was about to leave, he added, "Just to let you know, he left because he thought you were all angry. I suggest you keep your emotions in check as well. Keep in mind, this is Itachi. Even as a brat, he still manages to see everything."

"Yeah, I figured that was it. Well, he'll see a difference tomorrow."

"Good." Was all Kakuzu said before continuing his way to Itachi's bedroom. He pushed open the door, turned on the light, and took in the bland bedroom. He saw the made bed, and chuckled at the fact that even as a kid Itachi was neat. He saw that the clothes he'd been wearing that morning were on top of the dresser, probably put there by Kisame because there's no way Itachi could reach up there, and he noticed a small white flower on the bedside table.

Rolling his eyes at the girlish item, he pulled back the bed sheets. He gently, more gently than he ever thought himself capable of, put the child in the bed. He took off Itachi's sandals to make him more comfortable, and then covered his small frame with the sheets. He put the sandals on the floor and started to leave the room. At the door, he took one last look at the kid.

Kakuzu thought that maybe, just maybe, having a kid in the Akatsuki wouldn't be that terrible.

Maybe.

He closed the light and left the room.

* * *

AN: Hey! This is a long chappie isn't it? Well, it's the longest chapter of the story. The others are all much shorter than this one. I think.

(1) I read in Kisame's bio he was six-foot-four, and it just stuck to me. He's freacking tall, and I wanted to mention it.  
(2) Prissy-pants? Asswipe? Yes, I have weird insults. I try to find some good ones, but the only ones I know are the weird kind. These are the insults that go around in my family...  
(3) I thought I should mention that Deidara is the one getting told all these lectures because he's the youngest Akatsuki member and the most naive. (And he does call Kisame 'Danna'.)  
(4) _Inferno _by Alighieri Dante. I read in Kakuzu's bio that he likes reading old books, and this is an old book. A very good one at that, I really recommend it. It's about Dante's passage through Hell, and I thought it fit well with Kakuzu's character. (PS: Kakuzu is 90 years old. I mention his age a couple times, thought I'd give you the exact number.)  
(5) I mentioned in the last chapter that they were happy to be in the Akatsuki. Still true. The whole angry thing is because they're angry at their childhood and their lives. How it turned out. Make sense?

A lot of numbers! Gosh...It's a long chapter though, and I like making sure people understand what I'm talking about.

Thank you for reading this, and I hope you enjoyed reading it!  
-MewMew


	4. Hidan Swore

**Chapter 4 - Hidan Swore**

Hidan swore out loud when he saw Itachi that morning. He'd kind of wished it was a dream, but it obviously hadn't been. He ignored Kisame telling him to watch his language around children, and sat down to eat. He saw the way everybody was babying the brat, and it annoyed him. They were supposed to be criminals, but now they were stuck being baby-sitters. When he'd joined Akatsuki, he'd expected more. A hell of a lot more.

He wanted a mission. He wanted to get away from the stupid hideout with the overly sensitive idiots he was stuck with. They couldn't take a joke and he despised it. Sure, making them angry was fun, but when they got angry for every little thing, that's when the fun was taken out of it. The only good thing was that he could do his rituals within the hideout without anybody saying anything.

He was pissed off when Pein told the blonde pansy and the puppet to join him in his office. They would be receiving a mission. He and Kakuzu hadn't been out on one in a long time, and he was getting tired of doing nothing. When the two left the Leader's office, Hidan saw that, though Deidara looked pleased to be able to go out, Sasori seemed almost angry about it.

"What went up your ass and died?" Hidan asked the puppet.

"Go crawl in a hole and die." _Ouch._

"Touchy, aren't we?" Hidan sneered. Over-sensitive, much?

"Fuck you, Hidan." Even Deidara seemed confused by Sasori's attitude. "Deidara, I'll meet you at the entrance in ten minutes. Don't be late." Sasori left the two alone.

"What's up with him?" Hidan was actually curious. The other was usually so calm and collected.

"I don't know, he's been weird since Leader-sama gave us our mission, yeah. He says he has important stuff to do, but we'll be back in two days, yeah." Deidara shrugged.

"I don't think cleaning his puppets is classified as 'important stuff'."

"I'm pretty sure that's not what he means, yeah." Deidara rolled his eyes, "Later asshole, I can't be late or Danna's gonna be pissed."

"Later, bitch." Hidan went in the direction that Sasori went, noticing that it wasn't towards his room. When he saw that Sasori was talking to Kisame in the kitchen, he leant against the hallway wall, next to the entrance to the kitchen, and listened to what they had to say. He was surprised to see that the kid wasn't there, but figured he would be with Konan. The kid was awake early that morning it seemed, because when Kisame had gone to get him he was already dressed and ready to go. Itachi had been in a good mood that morning, a good night's rest having done him some good.

"Understood? Only a couple hours. I'll look more into it when I return but until then, just keep him here. I can't believe I have to go on a mission now of all times." Sasori sounded irritated.

"Yeah, I got it. Come back as soon as you can." Kisame sounded troubled.

"I will."

Hidan heard Sasori coming towards him, and stepped back. He made it seem as if he'd just arrived and entered the kitchen. The puppet said nothing to him as he passed by. Kisame didn't look at him, only at the floor.

"What's up fishstick?" Hidan greeted the other.

Kisame looked up at him and put on a fake smile, "Oh, I'm going to the beach with Itachi! He's actually excited about it. It's weird, he used to hate most types of water."

"Does the kid even know how to swim?"

"If he doesn't, he will." Kisame said in a false cheery tone and exited the room without saying another word to the Jashinist. **(1)**

Hidan felt ignored. More than usual.

Not knowing what to do, he went to go see Kakuzu. The old man would be in his room, just like every other day. Counting his stupid money. Hidan entered the others room without knocking, and as predicted, Kakuzu was sitting at his desk scribbling on a piece of paper.

"What do you want, Hidan?" Kakuzu didn't even turn to look at him.

"I'm bored." He stated simply.

"That's not my problem. Go away."

To irritate him, Hidan went closer to the desk, looking over his shoulder at the papers on his desk, "You like to think you're organized, but you really aren't. Did you know that?" He commented on the cluttered desk.

"Hidan." His tone held a warning.

"Kakuzu." The Jashinist said in a mocking tone.

"Go annoy someone else. Unlike you, I have important things to do."

"_Go annoy someone else. Unlike you, I have important things to do._" He mimicked, "Yeah, like playing around with numbers counts as something important."

The older man didn't bother giving him a reply. He reached back with his left hand, and sent it out, effectively grabbing Hidan's neck and choking him. The Jashinist didn't push against the hand, knowing it would be useless, and he kind of enjoyed the feeling of running out of oxygen. The way his lungs ached and the numbing of his body. It was an addicting feeling.

"Well, aren't you in a peachy mood today." He managed to cough out.

He was lifted off his feet and he was removed from the room. Kakuzu made his elongated hand put him out of his room and close the door behind him. He was hoping that, that move would be enough to prove his point. He didn't want to be bothered.

Hidan massaged his throat and glared at the closed door. He was tempted to go back in the room to bother the penny pincher a little more, but he decided against it. Not because he didn't want to annoy Kakuzu further, but because he wanted to go see someone else. If he enjoyed pissing anyone off, it was Pein.

He went directly to the head office. It was the largest room of the hideout, of course. And, it was the only room on the hideout that Hidan knocked on the door before entering. Being told to enter, he pushed open the large steel door. (It had once been a normal, wooden door, but Deidara had blown that one up.) Seated at his desk, overflooding with papers, just like Kakuzu's, was Pein.

"What do you want?" The Akatsuki's leader looked up from his work and stared at him expectantly.

"What's wrong with everybody today? Man, everybody's so fucking impatient! I just want to know if there's any missions available. I'm bored."

Pein leant back in his chair and crossed his arms, looking at Hidan thoughtfully, "Well, I just might have something..."

"What is it? I'll do anything do get out of this depressing dump."

"I have a list of things that I need. If you really want a mission, you can go get these important items for me." Pein held out a small piece of paper towards him.

"Finally something to do! Fuck this place is boring!" He took the paper and scanned it, he looked up and saw the Leader's smirk, "This is a grocery list."

"I know."

"You said _important _things."

"Food is important Hidan."

"But-"

"Hidan, this is your mission. If you chose to accept it, you may leave now, if not, go away." Pein's voice was stern.

"Fine. I accept this stupid mission." Hidan snapped and left the room.

He made his way out of the hideout, cursing the Leader the entire way. Upon entering the forest, he made a mental decision. (Which wasn't so mental since he was talking out loud.) He was going to make Pein wait. He was going to take as much time as he possibly could, just to anger the Leader. If he wanted something done quickly, he should of asked somebody else to do his stupid groceries.

He did whatever he could to take up some time. He chopped down a couple of trees, just for the Hell of it. He cleaned his scythe, which was hard to do since the things he normally used to do the work were in his room, but he figured something out. He dozed off for a short time. He killed the unfortunate man who decided to take a walk through the forest that day. Which led to him doing his ritual. He did a bunch of fun stuff.

Eventually, he made his way to the actual market. He took out the paper from his pocket and read the list. It was short. Ignoring the stares he received, (The giant scythe was a bit scary for civilians) he walked through the store, grabbing the few items. Sometimes he'd curse aloud, frightening a couple children and an afronted mother. He was pissed off.

Being errand boy for the Akatsuki was a waste of his talent. He should of been fighting, but no, he had to get groceries. But, he accepted the fact that they may be criminals and killers, they still had to eat. Even for him, the immortal Jashinist, food was essential. Grabbing a box of pocky for himself, he went to the cash register with the items.

What kind of criminals had to pay for food anyways?

He grabbed the bag from the woman and left the store. He took his sweet time walking back to the hideout. In the midst of the forest, he put the bags on the floor, pulled out his box of pocky, and sat down to eat. If he were with Kakuzu, he would of been scolded.

"_You won't be hungry for supper_." Hidan said, mimicking his partner. He laughed, enjoying the food.

The old man wasn't there now, so he could eat whatever he wanted without having to hear anyone bitch about it. He was halfway through the packet when he felt a presense coming towards him. He put away the food. He leant against the tree he was seated in front of, and waited. His gaze strayed towards the sky, watching the clouds go by. He'd always enjoyed cloud gazing. When the footsteps stopped nearby, he looked to see who it was. It was the brat. His eyes were on the floor and he was wringing his hands in front of him.

"Hey, brat." He greeted the kid, his tone bored. He didn't really mind Itachi's presense. He was a talker, and he didn't care to whom he was talking.

"Hello." Itachi still didn't look at him.

It took him a moment, but he remembered why Itachi was uncomfortable around him. The previous mornings ritual. The kid probably thought he was a monster of some sort. Funny, Hidan thought, that Itachi was afraid of a monster when he would become one in a decade.

"I thought you were at the beach with Kisame." He said.

"We came back a little while ago." Hidan then saw that the tips of the black hair were still a bit wet.

"I see. And why are you out here? You never know what dangers could be out here." Hidan grinned when Itachi looked at him, his eyes widened a bit out of fear. The kid took a couple more steps towards him.

"I asked Kisame-senpai if I could take a walk." He coughed into his sleeve. Hidan raised an eyebrow at it, if the kid came back from the beach sick, Kisame would feel terrible. The Jashinist knew he could probably use that against the fishman, and smirked at the thought. Kisame was never offended by anything, and Hidan was working on ways to get under his skin. This just might be it.

"Why would you want to take a walk? What's the point of that? Do something like training instead." Hidan sneered. He didn't get the prospect of 'taking a walk'.

"I wanted a bit of fresh air, that's all...And Kisame-senpai said he doesn't want me to do any training." Itachi replied.

"Why the Hell not? You're supposed to be a ninja!"

"I don't know...He just really doesn't want me to." Itachi shrugged his shoulders, as if he didn't really care, but his face showed otherwise.

"Do you want to train?" Hidan was curious. He'd never seen Itachi train before, and hoped that maybe he could at least see the tiny Itachi do it. It'd be better than nothing.

"Well...Father says that if you don't train for a long time you'll start to get weaker."

"That wasn't my question, brat." Hidan was begining to lose patience. He was tired of the kid never answering anything with his own opinion.

"I don't really...I wouldn't mind-"

While the kid tried to stammer out an answer, Hidan suddenly felt a threatening presense. Sensing an attack, he jumped up. Itachi looked at him in fright, Hidan guessed he was afraid he'd angered him by not answering him. The Jashinist ran, picked up the child, making both of them avoid a large jet of water in the form of a dragon. He landed further away, put down the kid, and looked at the area from which the attack came from. Itachi stood behind him, his eyes wide and frightened.

"Come on out you coward!" Hidan challenged the enemy, gripping his scythe tightly. He was pumped up for a good battle, though he did wonder who the Hell was attacking him.

Nobody answered him, but they certainly accepted the challenge. A man jumped out from a nearby tree, a large sword in his hand. He went directly for the Jashinist. It was easy for Hidan to deflect him using his scythe, and the man landed further away in a crouch. He saw the sound forehead protector, and grimaced. He knew that anything having to do with sound had something to do with Orochimaru. Hidan had never met him, but had heard unflattering stories.

"I always enjoy a new sacrifice for Jashin-sama and all, but why are you here?" He asked, though he had an idea.

"We're here for the kid, of course. I'm sure you know that Orochimaru-sama wants him, so if you just hand him over, there won't be any problems." The man grinned, feeling as if he already won.

"If I let you leave with the kid, the others would shit bricks for weeks, and besides, I haven't done a decent ritual in days."

As was normal for him, he waited for the enemy to attack first. He knew enough about Itachi to know that the brat would stay out of the way, and kept his attention on only the enemy. As was also normal, the enemy underestimated him. He charged towards Hidan, probably attempting hand-to-hand combat, which was an idiot move. Hidan knew he had water elemental jutsu, and that would of been the better move to do. Because of his scythe, it was obvious that he too was specialized in close combat.

The first thing he had to do was collect some blood. For without it, the ritual couldn't be done. He ran forward, catching the other off guard, he aimed a punch that was blocked, and he kicked out with his right foot. The man blocked that too, but only managed to get out of the way when Hidan attacked with his scythe. He grinned when he grazed the man's shoulder, drawing just enough blood.

He was about to begin the ritual when he heard a sharp cry behind him. The brat. He whirled around to find a second enemy going for the kid. The cry had come when the woman, the second enemy, tried to grab him. But Hidan was surprised to see the Sharingan blazing in the Uchiha's eyes. There was only one tomoe, but his eyes were just as hard and set as when he was an adult. The kid wasn't going to be a match at all for the woman, but seeing the Sharingan had made her hesitate. She hesitated long enough for Hidan to intervene.

"It's kind of low trying to attack a three year old." Hidan stated, as he attacked the woman with his scythe. She jumped out of the way. "I only need one for my ritual, so guess I'll do away with you quickly." He shot a look at Itachi, who was staring at him with the Sharingan still activated. He almost cringed. The eyes were set on fighting mode, and the coldness threw him off a little. "Watch yourself, kid." Itachi nodded. He stepped away, giving Hidan more room to fight.

Right now, it was a bit hard for him to attack either of them. The man was to the left and the woman the right, and he didn't want to leave Itachi alone. He would wait for them to approach together, and hopefully he could keep them both too preoccupied to think of the kid. Luckily, he wasn't disappointed.

Perhaps they both decided that attacking as a team would risen their chances of winning. Either way, Hidan was pleased. They fought with the close range attacks for quite some time. His speed helped him immensely. He toyed with them for a while, making them attack him, and dodging them. Growing tired of this, he pulled out of the pikes within the folds of his sleeve and extended it. He did it in the middle of dodging, and the enemies only noticed at the very last second. He implanted the pike in the woman's chest, effectively stabbing her heart. Her eyes were wide, and her mouth hung open. He pulled out his pike and let her lifeless body fall to the floor.

He turned to the man and grinned, knowing this part would be far more fun. There was still a bit of blood on his scythe from before and started the ritual. They were far from the kid now, and the man was a good distance away from him. He talked to him to distract him.

"Why does Orochimaru want the brat anyways? He's not much anymore." He asked.

"That's for him to know, and you to wonder."

"Meaning, you have no clue."

The man glared at him. "Orochimaru-sama has his reasons for secrecy."

"Yeah, okay." He snorted ungraciously, "I can't believe you think that crap is true. He obviously doesn't give a damn about you. But that's no surprise really." The sign was drawn on the floor. "I'd like to introduce you to a friend of mine. I like to call him, pain." And he stabbed himself in the shoulder with his pike.

The man in front of him cried out in pain, clutching his shoulder which begun to seep blood. Hidan pulled out the pike roughly. Itachi looked at Hidan, his black skin and white skeletal markings making him look like a demon, and was trying to figure out what the jutsu's purpose was. He cringed at the blood that came out of the wound on Hidan's shoulder.

The Jashinist laughed, "I'd love to toy with you, but I have to get going. You're one of the lucky one's. You'll die quickly." With that said, he stabbed himself in the heart, and the man fell to the ground clutching the wound over his heart.

Hidan heard a gasp, and looked over at Itachi. The kid was looking at him, worry clear on his face. The Jashinist grinned, "Don't worry kid, I ain't gonna die that easily." He pulled out the pike, and hissed at the pain. He wiped away the blood, and let the jutsu drop. His skin turned back to normal. He wiped away the marking on the ground and went over to the kid. He awkwardly stared at him, and Itachi just stared at him in awe.

"Okay," Hidan crouched in front of Itachi, "Just, close your eyes or something. Kisame'll be pissed if I let you see this. So go, close your eyes." The kid hesitantly closed his eyes, the Sharingan having faded away from the shock of seeing the ritual, and put his hands over them.

Hidan made his prayer first, to Jashin-sama, and then went over to the woman's body. He stood next to her, and performed the disintegration jutsu that the tracker ninja's, and the criminals, knew. It was to get rid of a dead body. It caused it to turn to ash and sink into the dirt. There was no way to reverse it. He proceded to do the jutsu onto the second body. He looked at the clearing and deemed it okay, went back to the kid.

He put an arm around the kid's stomach and picked him up, causing the Uchiha to open his eyes. He was holding Itachi like a person would hold a basketball when standing around. Up against his hip. It wasn't the most comfortable way to be carried, or the most caring, but Itachi didn't say anything. He looked up at Hidan, still looking at him in awe. He hadn't seen anyone fight to the death before. He didn't enjoy the killing part, but he liked watching people fight. Seeing a persons techniques and skills was one of the fun parts of being a ninja.

"We have to get back to the hideout. Pein's going to want to know about the attack."

"Why were they after me?" Itachi asked him.

"You caught that, did you? Well, I don't know. Ask Kisame."

"Oh...Okay. What was that jutsu you used?"

Hidan looked down at the child and was annoyed at the absense of fear. The child was probably going to like him now that he'd helped him. "It's called the Curse Technique." He replied.

"It's interesting."

He would have enjoyed telling the kid about the Jashin faith, but they were already at the entrance to the hideout. Maybe another time. He entered and tried to find Kisame. He was probably looking for the kid. Hidan found the fishman in the kitchen, preparing supper.

"Yo, fishstick." He said, approaching the other man. Kisame turned to him and a relieved expression appeared on his face upon seeing his partner.

"Thank God you found him. I had just asked Konan to look for him too."

Hidan frowned, "Next time, keep your brat close to you." He changed his grip on the kid so that he was holding the back of his collar instead, and held him out to Kisame.

"Don't hold him like that." Kisame's voice was angry, and he grabbed Itachi out of Hidan's hands'. He held him in a better position, and shot Itachi a worried look.

"It's okay, Senpai." Itachi reassured him. Suddenly his face brightened, and he smiled at Kisame, "We got into a fight with some enemy out in the forest and Hidan-senpai saved me. You shouldn't be angry with him." It was the longest Itachi had spoken in a really long time, and he said it so enthusiastically, that Kisame didn't really take in the words until a moment after.

"_What?_" Kisame looked at Hidan for an explanation. "What fight?" His voice was threatening.

"It's just what he said. I was out in the forest, he met up with me, and suddenly we were attacked by sound ninja. They were after the kid."

"Why is that?" Itachi looked up at Kisame.

The fishman sighed, "They were after your Sharingan, I'm guessing. Did they mention Orochimaru?" Hidan nodded, "Alright, let's go report this to Leader-sama." The trio left the kitchen and headed towards the Leader's office. Kisame stopped once at Kakuzu's room to ask him to finish up supper. He grudgingly accepted.

"Why would they want my Sharingan? It's not even all that powerful." Itachi asked. He didn't notice Hidan and Kisame exchange a look.

"They're after all Kekkai Genkai, mostly the Sharingan, and since you're the only Uchiha away from Konoha, they think you're vulnerable. But you don't have to worry, you'll be fine here. You just won't be able to leave the hideout unattended anymore."

"Oh..."

They knocked on the door leading to Pein's office. They entered the room, and Hidan wasn't surprised at all to see Pein in the same position he had been early that morning. Sitting at his desk with papers strewn around him.

"We have something to discuss." Kisame started and Hidan continued by explaining his story to the Leader. Pein looked more and more pissed as the story unfolded.

"I see...He'll have to remain within the hideout until we figure out Orochimaru's objective." Pein said.

"Understood." Kisame agreed.

Pein dismissed them, telling them he'd look more into, and before they left he added, "And Hidan? Where are those groceries?"

Hidan halted, "Crap...They were ruined by the water jutsu."

"You can go back tomorrow." Was all the Leader said, and they left the room.

The trio started walking down the hallways, before Kisame put Itachi on the floor. "Itachi, I want you to go find Konan, okay? Ask her to do something with you. I have to go finish supper."

"Or else Kakuzu's going to bitch for a week." Hidan added. Kisame shot him a half-hearted glare.

"Alright." Itachi said. He started to leave, but turned back and went over to Hidan. He pulled on his cloak to get his attention, although he already had it. When the Jashinist was looking at him, he smiled, "Thank you for helping me!"

Hidan looked at the child, surprised. He didn't know what to say, and just patted his head. "Ehm...Okay." Itachi didn't seem bothered by the response. He then left them to go do what was asked of him by Kisame.

Once the kid was out of sight, Kisame turned to Hidan, grinning, "Looks like you have a new friend."

"I do not asshole." Hidan growled.

"But seriously, thanks for helping him."

"Yeah, well, I just didn't want everybody here pissed at me if he got himself kidnapped." When he saw that Kisame was about to leave, he stopped him, "I wanted to ask you something. Did you know that Itachi had his Sharingan at three?"

Kisame looked at him in shock, that enough telling the Jashinist that no, he did not know. "You mean like, now?"

"Yeah. When I fought in the forest, he activated it when one of the enemies tried to touch him." Hidan explained.

"But..."

"I thought you knew. When he said 'it's not that powerful' I thought you'd figure it out." Hidan said mockingly.

"It just didn't register, I guess. In the Uchiha clan, the Sharingan has to be activated, for him to have it at three...That's a really young age, according to what I know anyways."

"They don't have that fucken' thing since birth?" Hidan asked.

"No, and not even all the Uchiha can get it activated."

"How does it activate?" Kisame just shrugged his shoulders. Itachi had never told him that part, "When he fought there was only one of those black dots around the pupil. But even then...His eyes were like they are normally. Like, all serious and stuff. It was creepy to see those eyes on a kid."

"Yeah, I'm sure."

"I don't get why Itachi said his Sharingan wasn't powerful though. If it's such a surprise he had it at three, then wouldn't that make it powerful?"

"I can't say for sure, but if I had to give a reason, I'd say it's because of his father. He never directly told me, but I always had a feeling he was often put down as a kid. He was a genius but they expected more. His father probably told him he, and his Sharingan, could be stronger and better. It was a lot of pressure on a kid."

"No wonder he killed his family! Pressure makes people crazy, you know. He went nuts and killed them all, they probably weren't expecting that!" Hidan laughed.

"You idiot." Kisame snapped, "He's not crazy."

"Well then, you tell me why he killed his family. I think my idea makes perfect sense."

"I haven't figured that part out yet. But it's not because he's nuts."

"Whatever you say, fishstick. You should go finish supper. A bitchy Kakuzu is...Well, Kakuzu."

"Yeah, later."

Kisame left to go to the kitchen, and Hidan made his way to the living room.

Hidan swore as he turned the corner to see a red blur enter one of the rooms in the hallways.

* * *

AN: Hello! Here's chapter four! (1) I know, I'm mean. I skipped the beach scene with Itachi and Kisame. I'd have liked to write it but I just didn't know what to do for it so...I had a lot of fun writting Hidan. He's an interesting character! I have no idea when Itachi first activated his Sharingan, but he had it mastered by seven so I figured at three it would be appropriate. Next chapter out on Sunday!

I hope you enjoyed the chapter!  
Thanks for reading, and please review!  
-MewMew


	5. Tobi Wondered

**Chapter 5 - Tobi Wondered**

Tobi wondered what was going on. Or well, Madara did. He was to go on a mission with Zetsu. He just needed a scroll from a nearby village. But the moment Zetsu had come to him, he knew the plantman had something important to tell him. He was quick to ask him what it was, and was...Fascinated by what he was told.

"Some sound ninja have turned Itachi back into a child, using some unknown jutsu."

"Isn't that interesting...How did those ninja get close enough to Itachi to do this?"

"Pein mentionned a 'moment of vulnerability'." Zetsu replied.

"His sickness."

"**Most likely.**"

"When we return, I will definitely have to see this." If Itachi was a child again, he really wanted to know what he remembered, what he was capable of, and if he would open up more. Because there were some questions Madara had asked Itachi that he'd never answered. Maybe now could be different.

**-Two Days Later In The Hideout- (Present Time)**

_'Don't cry, Sasuke. Your big brother is here for you no matter what happens.'_

_'I've had enough. There's no hope left for this pathetic clan.'_

_'Foolish little brother, if you wish to kill me, hate me, detest me. And yet survive in an unsightly way. Run, run and cling to life, and when you have the same eyes as mine, come to me.'_

_'Forgive me, Sasuke.'_

_Blood. So much blood. The Mangekyo Sharingan making every colour more vibrant and vivid. Mostly the red. He couldn't control himself. He just had to watch as body after body fell to the floor. He could only watch in horror as his own hand dealt the killing blow to his own mother and father. He saw a boy run into the room, it must have been his little brother, for he called him 'Aniki'. He wanted to cry, but he couldn't._

_Not now._

_"Itachi!"_

He sat up in his bed, tears pouring down his cheeks. He saw Kisame kneeling next to the bed, a worried look on his face. Itachi held the blanket in an iron grip, and his eyes were wide, trying to remember where he was. But he couldn't. The nightmare had been too clear, and that's all he could see now. He wanted to say something, but only a whimper came out. He let himself cry. He covered his face with his hands. He felt Kisame wrap his arms around his small frame, and he leant into the hug. Itachi let go of his blanket and took hold of the others cloak instead. Kisame rubbed his back soothingly.

Suddenly he started coughing. He coughed into his hand, the fit not letting up. He had a hard time breathing between the crying and coughing.

"Are you alright?" Kisame asked, though he obviously wasn't.

Itachi pulled back, and the coughs slowly subsided. He put his hands over his eyes and rocked gently, "It's too much! I can't...I can't!" Kisame hugged him again.

"It's okay Itachi, you'll be alright." He tried to reassure him, though he had no clue why he was so upset. He'd entered the room to see him tossing and turning in his sleep, and he'd started crying soon after. He'd tried to wake him, succeeding after a couple minutes.

After a few minutes the tears became less heavy and the whimpers less frequent. He pulled back again and looked at Kisame, tears still sliding from his eyes, "I saw...It."

"What's 'it'?" Kisame asked hesitantly.

"It...I saw it. He said I killed them. And I saw me doing it. And I couldn't stop! I tried! I didn't want them to die. He said I killed my family. And I saw it." His voice came out pained, and the tears came even faster.

Kisame saw red. He was going to kill Hidan. First though, he had to deal with Itachi. "Listen, Itachi, whatever you were told, it's not true okay. You didn't kill anybody alright? It was just a nightmare. Hidan's an idiot, don't believe him. Please, calm down. You don't need to be afraid. It didn't happen. You're family is safe and sound, I promise."

"But...But, I heard him say it!" Itachi protested.

"It's okay, Itachi. Sometimes people say things that aren't true. It happens. It shouldn't, but it does. Do you believe me when I say your family is alright?"

Slowly, Itachi nodded, and the tears stopped. "Yes...I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what? You don't need to be sorry for anything!"

"Father says boys don't cry. That it makes us weak." Itachi explained.

Kisame frowned, "Well, sometimes you have no other choice than to cry. Do you want to go play with Konan? She'll make you feel better." And she'll know how, much more than Kisame does. He'd never dealt with anybody upset before, and it was unsettling. If anyone could help the child in the base, it would be Konan.

Itachi nodded, wiping away the remaining tears, "If she...If she wants to." He said and had wanted to get out of bed, but was picked up instead.

"She will," Kisame said convincingly. Mostly because it was true. Konan loved doing anything with the kid.

As they left the room, Kisame noticed that Itachi was more unfocused than usual. He was still thinking about the nightmare, replaying it in his mind, and to try to distract him, the fishman talked to him, though he wasn't sure he was being listened to. "I'm sure you'll be happy to know that Deidara and Sasori came back from their mission this morning. Deidara told me that Sasori rushed the mission, and that he locked himself in his workroom the moment he came back. Sasori always was impatient when he had something to do. And Deidara also said he wants to see you later. I think he wants to show you his art..."

"That's nice." Itachi mumbled after a while, just to show he was listening. He wondered where they were going, but didn't ask. They would probably just walk around until they found her.

And they did after only a couple minutes. She must have just come out of the shower, for her hair was still a bit wet. They met up with her in the hallway and she greeted them.

"Hey Konan, can you play with Itachi for a little while?" He asked her.

"I'd love to!" She took the child into her arms, and shot Kisame a look of suspicion, "Is something stupid about to happen?" Itachi also looked at Kisame, trying to decipher the unusually stern expression on his face.

"Probably." He replied without hesitation.

"Well, in that case, take this with you. It'll come find me when destruction starts." Konan lifted her hand a little and a small, paper butterfly flew out from her sleeve. It landed on Kisame's shoulder. He gave the butterfly an uncaring look.

"Alright. Have fun." He said, more to Itachi than Konan. The child nodded, forcing a small smile, and Konan walked away, leaving Kisame alone in the middle of the hallway.

His face turned hard and he set off like a man on a mission. And he was. He went straight to the kitchen, knowing that it was Hidan's turn to make breakfast. When he entered the kitchen, he saw the Jashinist at the stove. He was just about to start cooking. Kisame walked over to him, and stopped once he was right behind him. Hidan turned to him and smirked at him. He was about to say something, but didn't quite get it out. Kisame punched him in the nose.

Hard.

There was an audible crack as the bone broke, and blood poured out of the broken nose. Hidan put a hand over it to stop the bleeding as best as he could, and glared at the fishman.

"What the fuck was that for?" He asked angrily.

Kisame grabbed Hidan's collar and lifted him up, his feet not touching the floor anymore, "You told him." He hissed out.

The Jashinist had one hand on his nose, the other on the massive hand that held him in the air, his glare remaining unwavering, "What the fuck are you talking about? I told what to who?" His lack of oxygen made him unable to say another word. His face started becoming a rather unappealing blue.

"You told Itachi about his family." Kisame whispered harshly, pushing Hidan against the stove. The Jashinist put one of his hands on the stove, to use it as leverage was his motive, but he accidentally put his hand on the hot circle that he had turned on to start cooking breakfast.

"Fuck!" He yelled, pulling away his hand, "And I didn't tell him anything!"

"Then can you tell me why this morning I found him having nightmares? And why did he tell me that someone told him he killed his family?" Kisame shoved him even harder against the cooking utensil.

"You fucking asshole! Get your facts straight! He heard us talking yesterday, and if I remember correctly, you were part of that conversation too!"

He kicked out with his foot, making Kisame jump back to avoid getting hit. Hidan landed on the ground, breathing heavily. He grabbed his scythe, which he always had nearby, and got into a defensive stance. He had good reason for it too, because Kisame was quick to attack him once more.

They quarelled a little, fighting hand-to-hand, but also bringing in their weapons. There wasn't much room though, for two big weapons and two disastrous fighters. They made dents in the counters and a large hole found its way in the ceiling. Somewhere during the spat, Kisame noticed that the small butterfly was gone from his shoulder. He wasn't surprised.

Suddenly, they both heard footsteps coming towards them in a hurry, but they both ignored it. Hidan's scythe got stuck in the wall next to the kitchen's entrance, right when Deidara entered the room. He stopped and looked at the destroyed kitchen in shock.

"What the Hell is going on here, yeah?" Deidara shouted above the noises of their fight.

"Stay out of this, whore!" Hidan yelled at him, pulling back his scythe and swinging it at Kisame.

The angered blonde reached into his pocket and pulled out a small owl shapped clay structure, "I'd hoped to test it first but...Oh well, yeah!" He threw the owl in between the two fighters.

Both Hidan and Kisame halted, looked at the clay sculpture, and then at Deidara, almost scared looks on their faces.

Deidara smirked, formed a sign in front of him, and said in an almost gleeful tone, "Katsu!"

**-With Konan and Itachi-**

She walked away from Kisame, holding the child in her arms. She was a little worried about what had upset both Kisame and the child. She could tell that something happened, but didn't ask, afraid of upsetting Itachi. She brought him to a room near her own bedroom, and in that room she kept her paper and origami projects that she didn't have the heart to throw away.

"Why does everyone carry me everywhere?" Itachi asked on the way to the room.

"Why not? We like carrying you, and I'm sure you like being carried."

"Father always says that since I know how to walk, that I should walk. He says that being carried is being lazy." Itachi explained.

"That's just silly." Konan said, entering the room. She left the door open just enough for her butterfly to fly through if it came back to her. And she had a feeling it would.

"I don't know." Itachi said, more to fill the silence than anything else, "Can you show me how to make those swans?" He asked.

"Of course!" She set him down and they went to a desk. She usually sat there to do her work. She pulled up a second chair and the two sat down. "Now, this is how we start..." She handed him a piece of paper and took one for herself, and started showing him the steps of making an origami swan.

It wasn't five minutes in did her paper butterfly come back to her. She looked at it, Itachi kept his gaze on the paper, and she reached out her hand. It flew into her sleeve and melded into her skin. The things it had seen immediately flashed before her eyes. She saw the two talking, and realized why Itachi was so upset. She would have to talk to Hidan and Kisame after.

She stood up, "Let's go outside." She wanted him out of the hideout, just in case the fight became really destructive. She knew that Hidan and Kisame wouldn't stop until the other was almost dead on the ground. Normally she would have tried to stop it, but now she had to think about Itachi. He wouldn't want to see two people he respected fighting so viciously.

Itachi looked up at her, obviously wondering why the sudden change, but he stood up, "Alright..." She knew he wanted to continue, and truthfully she did too, but they had to leave.

"We'll come back after, okay? There's just something I want to show you first." She made up a quick lie. She'd bring him to Zetsu's greenhouse. It would keep him distracted and she was sure he'd like it in there. She'd noticed the small, white flower on his bedside, and knew he must like flowers.

Itachi walked over to her and looked up at her expectantly. He was growing used to being carried around. She smiled and picked him up. She exited the room and left the hideout through a side door that was nearby. She walked quickly, having a bad feeling about the entire thing.

Once she arrived at the greenhouse, she was glad, and not glad, to see Zetsu and Tobi there. They had just returned from their mission. She walked over to them, hesitant, she wasn't sure what Madara thought of what happened to Itachi.

"Hello, Konan." Madara said, speaking in his normal tone instead of Tobi's cheery one.

"Hi guys, Itachi, this is Tobi. Tobi, meet Itachi." Konan introduced them. She noticed how Madara eyed the child, and hoped it wasn't a bad thing.

Suddenly a large blast of wind swept over them, and she turned around. Out in the distance a dark smoke was portruding from the hideout. She stared at it in horror, wondering how far their fight had gone. But she knew that the smoke was Deidara's fault. Accepting the fact that she had to go inside and intervene, she turned back to Zetsu and Madara.

"Can you watch him for a little while? I have to go in there."

"It'd be a pleasure." Madara's purred, unnerving Konan quite a bit.

"Just make your way back slowly while I try to figure out what happened. Please don't do anything to him!" She pleaded. She handed Madara the child, and she disappeared in a cloud of paper.

"Would you like me to go see what has happened? **Those idiots better not have blown up the base.**" Zetsu said. It was hard to tell if the base was intact or not, the black smoke was too thick.

"Yes, I'll watch the brat." And with that, Zetsu disappeared in the ground and went into the hideout.

Madara held Itachi under his armpits away from him and stared at the kid. Itachi stared back.

Itachi tilted his head slightly, "Hello." He said hesitantly.

"Hey, brat." Madara continued to hold him away from himself awkwardly. He'd never held a child before.

"What does 'brat' mean?" Itachi asked him.

"...It's another word for kid." He replied after a moment. He'd never truly thought what 'brat' meant before. He didn't think it actually had a meaning. It was just a, supposedly, insulting name for a child. Itachi didn't seem any bit insulted by it. Probably because he didn't know it was supposed to be.

"Oh..." Even the child could tell the moment was awkward, and didn't say anything else.

"Let's go inside." Madara said after a few seconds of the two of them just staring at each other. He started to walk while still holding Itachi, but then remembered that the kid knew how to walk, and put him on the ground. Itachi walked close to him, keeping a hand clasped onto Madara's cloak. He was still frightened after the attack on him and Hidan the previous day.

"So, Itachi-kun, how do you like your stay with the Akatsuki?" He allowed the child to keep a hold of him, if only to gain his trust and to then have him open up.

"I like it very much! Everybody is very nice, most of the time." Itachi replied, he looked up at Madara to see if he'd said the right thing or not, but couldn't see his face because of the mask.

"Why aren't you with your parents? Aren't they worried about you?" Madara asked.

"My parents sent me away because a war is starting. Leader-sama told me that I'll be safer here. I don't understand though...Father says that I have to learn to take care of myself. But by sending me away, how can I do that?" Itachi looked at Madara as if expecting an answer.

"War is...The exception to a lot of rules. That's all." He said as an explanation.

"I guess." Itachi didn't really sound convinced, but because of his child-like attention span, he didn't really care about getting the exact answer.

"Do you like your home, kid?" That was one of the many questions Madara had always wanted to ask him. His childhood couldn't have been perfect if he had managed to kill his entire clan, with his help of course. It was to protect the village, but it was still his very own family. Madara knew though, that Itachi's love for the village begun after the Third Great Ninja World War, and in the child's mind, that was just happening.

"I don't understand the question." Itachi mumbled, looking down at the floor.

"When you're at home with your parents, are you happy?"

Itachi looked up at him, startled. Madara knew it was the first time he'd ever been asked that question. Suddenly the kid smiled at him, almost grimly, and just returned his gaze to the path ahead of him. They were nearly at the base and the black smoke was less thick.

Madara waited for an answer, but grew impatient. He taped Itachi's head gently, "Are you going to answer me?" He asked.

Itachi smiled at him once more, this time it was a smile that said he had a secret. A smile that kids were great at doing, "No." He replied.

The elder of the two frowned, and was glad to have his mask to cover it. He didn't have the time to say much else upon seeing that they were really close to the hideout, and that someone might hear them. Knowing that if Tobi was seen, he'd be expected to remain there for quite some time. Asking and begging to be allowed to join the Akatsuki were things most of the members would be waiting for. But, Madara had a lot of important plans that needed to be worked on back in his lab. As they were really close, he sensed the members starting to leave, and stopped walking.

"Itachi-kun, I have to go. You wait here for someone to come get you." Madara removed Itachi's hand from on his cloak, and took a step back.

The child took a step forward, he was biting his bottom lip out of worry, "But...Kisame-senpai said I'm not allowed to be outside alone anymore because I got attacked yesterday..." It was obvious that the kid wanted to please everybody, by doing what Kisame had told him but also wanting to let Madara leave because that's what he wanted. Itachi's gaze strayed to the grass.

"You'll be fine, brat. Everybody's going to be outside in a few seconds. Just stay right where you are." Madara warned. Without waiting for another objection, he disappeared in the blink of an eye. His teleportation jutsu brought him back into the forest where he kept an eye on the kid, and waited for Zetsu to report back to him, to let him know what happened.

Itachi looked at the base, glad to see that it was intact. He was worried though, to know what on earth had happened to the base. The thick, black smoke was coming from everywhere, the windows, the cracks around the doors, and through any hole it could find. Like Madara asked, he stayed put. But just when his curiosity was becoming too much to ignore, the front door burst open. He took a step back out of fright, and watched with child-like fascination as the members started exiting the hideout.

There must of been some special kind of chemical in the smoke because it clung to everything it touched, including the Akatsuki members. They were tainted with shades of black and grey all over them, and the ones near the explosion, Hidan, Kisame, and Deidara, were even coughing it out. Hair, faces, cloaks, hands, everything was numerous shades darker. Even Konan, who had showed up later, was covered in the smoke.

The members who came out of the hideout were Hidan, Kisame, Deidara, Konan, Pein, Kakuzu, and Sasori. Zetsu had disappeared as soon as he'd seen what happened and went to report it to Madara. All of them looked angry except for Konan who was relieved, and Deidara who looked pleased.

"It came out perfectly, even better than I thought it would, yeah!" Deidara exclaimed, letting them all know who was the cause of it, even though it was obvious.

"You asshole! Why the fuck did you do that?" Hidan was also a bit relieved, glad it wasn't a bomb, like he and Kisame had thought.

"I was in the middle of something _important _you idiot! This better not push it back." Sasori threatened his teammate.

"Do you know how much time and money it's going to take to clean all this?" Kakuzu asked.

"Deidara, you better have a good explanation for this." Pein's voice stopped anybody else from saying anything, and they all looked at Deidara expectantly.

"I was stopping those two from fighting, yeah, and I had to try it out sometime." Deidara was passing a hand through his hair, bits of black powder floated to the ground. He was grinning though, despite the threats.

"You _fucking _idiot." Hidan growled.

Nobody else said anything. A soft sound halted them in their tracks, and they all turned to look at Itachi. It was unexpected, like a church bell in the night. And that's what it could be compared to. A soft chiming sound. Itachi was laughing. He stopped after a moment and smiled brightly at all of them. They were all too shocked to say anything.

"You all look silly!" Itachi said and started laughing again.

The Akatsuki members finally took a look at themselves and the others, and they couldn't help but laugh too. Even Pein chuckled lightly.

From further away, Madara watched the joyful moment in scrutiny. Sometimes, even the criminals of the world need a moment to laugh. These people were the tears, blood, and sweat, the power, of their previous villages. But even power, no matter how much of it, Madara know's this, has a soul.

Everybody has a soul.

* * *

AN: Hello! Here's the next chappie! The chapters will be shorter from now on. To be honest, writing the first part, with Itachi crying, actually made me cry. I cry way too easily. The italics, like the memory's, are some of Itachi's more famous quotes. They are all from the manga, if you don't recognize one of them, just ask and I can tell you where it came from.

I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Thanks for reading!  
Please review!  
-MewMew


	6. Sasori Feared

**Chapter 6 - Sasori Feared**

Sasori feared for the kid. The blood samples and the exams he'd done on the kid had given him some very interesting, yet frightening results. He had wanted to look at them right away, but was sent out on a mission. He'd rushed the mission, making it last only a day instead of the two-three it normally would have. As soon as he got back, he'd spent the entire morning observing the blood samples.

The black smoke had caused another temporary hiatus on his work. But, as soon as everybody had stopped laughing, Pein had told Deidara to clean up the mess and everything returned to normal. Deidara was cleaning the hideout with Hidan and Kisame. Itachi was with Konan, continuing their work on the paper swans. Kakuzu and Pein had returned to their work. Zetsu and Madara had left the premises. And Sasori had returned to his workroom.

Luckily, he'd covered up the table on which he'd been working, or else the samples would of been ruined by the black smoke. The first thing he did was get changed and get cleaned off, then he went right back to his desk to work. There was nothing in the blood that showed any indications of a poison, or even a jutsu, being used on the kid. That meant it wasn't a poison at all, and that the jutsu was fast acting. If it was already gone, then it would do what it had to quickly, and the effects would then be reversed.

Sasori guessed there were only a few days left of the transformation.

But there was more in the samples and in the exams that he'd done that needed to be carefully looked at. Sasori was no doctor though, and knew he couldn't give a diagnostic without another opinion as well. He wrote down the few things it could be and went through some old medical books he had, but knew he would have to talk with Kakuzu. He was well informed on these things, and with his age, he'd seen a lot of them.

Late in the afternoon, he went to Kakuzu's room. It was the last thing he could do now. He knocked on the door and was told to enter. He saw him at his desk, as per usual, and walked over to the other man. He and Kakuzu got along fairly well, and he didn't mind asking him for a favor.

"As I'm sure you know, I've taken a look at Itachi's blood samples and have performed a couple exams on him."

Kakuzu turned in his chair a little, and looked at the puppetman, "Yes, I know."

"I have found some interesting results, but I would prefer having a second opinion on them before sharing them with Kisame and Itachi." Sasori explained.

"I'll be with you in a minute." Kakuzu agreed to do the favor, and Sasori nodded his thanks.

Sasori went back to his workroom to wait. He brushed off his cloak again, the halls were still full of the smoke, despite the fact that all the windows were open. He paced his room for only a minute before Kakuzu showed up. He'd expected to wait longer.

"You did that quickly." Sasori commented.

"I know you don't like waiting. And I'm curious to know what this discovery is." Kakuzu strode over to the messy desk. Sasori was usually organized, but that wasn't where his attention was at the time.

"Well, everything's there." Sasori gestured towards the desk. He went to lean against the door, and watched as Kakuzu sat down and looked at everything. He took a look at the blood, and examined the results that Sasori had scrawled on a few pieces of paper. The puppet was stressed about the fact that the other didn't say anything.

It didn't even take him a few minutes before he stood up from the desk and walked over to Sasori, his eyes hard, "You were right. The BNP in the blood is much higher than the norm, and if you did the exams right, which I'm sure you did, the signs are all there. You should discuss this with Kisame and Itachi, though I'm sure they're both aware of it to some degree. I would normally suggest medication, but he must have gotten some somehow, or he would never have made it to twenty without any."

Sasori sighed, "I'll tell them tomorrow."

"You shouldn't push back bad news just because you don't want to be the one to tell them." Kakuzu scolded.

"They're both busy today. Kisame has to keep cleaning and Itachi's doing something with Konan. Besides, I don't want Itachi walking through these halls until it airs out. I already told Konan to keep him with her." Sasori glared at the older man.

"Does she know?" Kakuzu asked.

"No, but I'm pretty certain she knows somethings wrong."

"Will you tell her? Itachi is a very discreet person, and he'll want the fewest people to know. Especially since he still has this problem. Not nearly as severely if he got good medical attention for it as a child, but it's still present. This isn't the kind of condition that goes away with time. It's something that's permanent."

"I know. I'll only tell her if she truly wants to know, but I don't think she'll ask."

"You should talk to Kisame first. To ease him into it. I know him well, and he cares about Itachi, which is quite ridiculous, but he does. He'll have a hard time accepting it."

"He's already aware that Itachi's sick. I talked to him yesterday morning before leaving for my mission. I told him not to stay at the beach too long because the air might not be good for him."

"Still. You should tell him without Itachi there."

"You want me to tell him today."

"Yes."

"Why?"

"It'll give him all night to think it over and to accept it. That way tomorrow when you tell Itachi, he'll be able to listen calmly. If he shows any signs of being nervous or worried, Itachi's going to notice and start to worry as well."

"I suppose you're right," Sasori sighed, "I'll go talk to him."

"Have fun." Kakuzu chuckled softly. Sasori moved away from the door to let the other leave the room.

Sasori grimaced, knowing that it wouldn't be pleasant. He left his workroom and started to search the hideout for Kisame. Luckily, he wasn't very hard to find. He was bickering with Hidan in the kitchen. Just as he entered the room, Deidara was threatening to explode the two of them if they didn't shut up. Not another word was spoken.

"Kisame, I need to talk to you." Sasori said. He grinned as he watched the three of them cleaning up the kitchen. Deidara was mopping the floor, Hidan was washing the windows, and Kisame was wiping the counters.

"Alright!" He seemed glad to have an excuse to get out of there. He was quick to put down his rag and make his way to the exit.

"You better come back after, yeah!" Deidara warned.

"Fucking lucky asshole, getting out of this damned woman's work." Hidan whispered harshly.

Kisame smirked at them and followed Sasori out of the room. He followed him all the way to his workroom before thanking him for getting him out of there. Sasori stared at him blankly, before letting the two of them into the room.

"So...What did you want to tell me?" Kisame asked.

"Sit down." Sasori pointed to the chair in front of the desk. Kisame complied, looking at the puppet uneasily.

"What is it?" His tone was a little more concerned now.

"I have the results from Itachi's tests. After much looking over, I have concluded that Itachi has Pulmonary Edema. It's a swelling in the lungs that's related to heart conditions. His Pulmonary Edema seems to be related to congestive heart failure, which means that his heart pumps slower than the norm. It's a permanent condition that needs to be well taken care of."

Kisame stared at the floor, listening to what Sasori was telling him. He didn't say anything, not really trusting his voice to work properly.

"That means that Itachi must still have the condition now. I need to know if you've seen him taking medication or if he's even taking care of himself. Does he eat properly? Does he sleep well? Is his bad health noticeable? As his teammate, you'll know more. I need some answers and I don't think he'll give them to me. As a kid he probably doesn't know much about it, and as an adult, he's secretive. Can you tell me anything?"

Slowly he raised his gaze to meet Sasori's, "I've known about him being sick for a couple years now. At first, he seemed perfectly healthy. But when he was about...Fifteen, or sixteen, he started getting worse. He had a fit of some sort, where he was coughing up blood, and he was really dizzy, and right after he went to bed. When I talked to him about it afterwards, he told me he was a bit sick but that it would go away. It always did. I didn't push further, but it happened almost regularly after that. He would always tell me it would go away."

"You knew about this for so long and you never told anybody?" Sasori sounded surprised.

"He didn't want me to tell." Kisame replied, shrugging his shoulders, "And he seemed so certain that it would just stop."

"Having this condition has become normal for him now. Kisame, I know you wanted to do what was asked of you, but you must realize that this condition could...Itachi can _die_ because of this."

"There wasn't much I could do, now could I? It's not like I could force him to go see a doctor."

"We could of helped him. I know exactly what needs to be done to help him."

Kisame stood up with an angry expression on his face, and he glared at Sasori, "Yeah, as if you care! None of you care!"

"Sit down, Kisame."

"None of you give a damn about him," Kisame hissed, "None of you ever gave him a second thought. To you guys, just like to everyone else, he was just a genius! A fucking tool! And all I want to know, is why is that normal? Why is using a child like a God damned tool normal? What has this world come to?"

Sasori put a hand on Kisame's shoulder, "Sit down."

With a sigh, he obliged. He knew that yelling and cursing would get him nowhere in that situation. He was frustrated and angry, but that wouldn't help Itachi. At the moment, that's what counted.

"You're right, Kisame. Every single word. We didn't care about him. We didn't care about anybody here. Because we're not _supposed_ to. I didn't even notice him until last year, when I realized how everybody is spoiled here except for him. But I care for him right now. You care about him. Konan cares about him, and truthfully, she cares about everyone. Even Deidara cares for him now. And I think the others are coming around. We all want him to live. I want him to live through this. When Itachi dies, he should die fighting like a real ninja. He lived his life to die that way, and I want to make that happen."

"Sasori..." Kisame didn't know what to say.

"If that's what's going to happen, I need you to answer my questions. He has to live through this condition if he's going to die fighting. Got it?" Kisame nodded, and Sasori started up on his questions, "Does he take any medication?"

"Yes, but I couldn't tell you what kind. He takes a couple different ones every day, but I don't think they're working very well."

"I'll have him take the one's he's supposed to, then. Is he eating healthy?"

"He doesn't eat much, but what he does eat is healthy."

"And does he sleep well?"

"Not at all. He barely sleeps. Even as a kid he doesn't. When I ask him why he can't sleep he doesn't tell me, so I don't know why. I know that some nights have to be because of nightmares, but besides that, I don't know what could be the cause of it."

"A lot of people with this condition have a hard time sleeping. Often times it's caused because when laying on a flat surface they feel out of breath, which makes it hard for them to sleep."

"The few times I've seen him sleep, he was always curled up."

"That helps make breathing easier when laying down. Now, can you tell me the regularity of these attacks?"

"You mean his fits? It's more often now, like once a month, and it's worse too. Before, after one of his fits he could keep going if he had to, but now he can't. It drains all his energy."

"He's going to need some new medication. What he's taking right now is definitely not doing what it's supposed to. I want to see him tomorrow, and I'll explain to him everything. I'll have him start the medicine tomorrow."

"Is this medicine going to make him feel better?"

"It should. If another attack happens, I'll change the dosage until it's just right for him."

Kisame looked on the desk and saw the papers. He read them, but didn't make much sense of them. He asked in a serious tone, "Are you certain about this? I trust your judgement but..."

Sasori took no offence, "I know I'm not a doctor. I had Kakuzu take a look and he agrees with everything. I know you're not happy that it can't be treated one hundred percent, but at least now you know what it is, and that it'll be better from now on."

"Yeah...Wait, Kakuzu knows?"

"I had to get a second opinion on all this."

"Itachi's not going to be happy that so many people know. He doesn't like attention."

"I know."

"He's not going to like people worrying about him." Kisame added.

"Who says we're worrying? There's nothing to worry about. He'll be fine." Sasori sounded confident, and Kisame had to smile.

"Yeah, but he doesn't know that."

Suddenly the door opened and there appeared Kakuzu, "Come on, we're going out to eat."

"What?"

"Why?"

Kakuzu opened the door wider and stepped inside, "The kitchen and dining room are still covered in Deidara's 'art'." His disdain for the word was clear, "And we have no groceries."

"Like, we're all going to eat at the same place?"

"At the same time?"

"No, of course not. We're going in two groups. I'm going with you, Sasori, along with our partners, and Kisame, you'll be going with Itachi, Konan, and the Leader. Zetsu has chosen to go find himself something to eat elsewhere with Tobi. How he can stand the brat, I don't know."

"That's...Better I guess." Kisame said.

"For you! I'm going to be stuck with Hidan and Deidara." Sasori sighed.

"They're still arguing." Kakuzu added.

"Let's just get this over with, then." Sasori stood up, Kisame doing the same.

The three of them left the room and Kakuzu lead them outside where the others were waiting for them. Deidara and Hidan were shooting glares at each other, but everyone else seemed fine with going out to eat. None of them had ever eaten out with anybody besides their partner, so it would prove interesting.

"Make sure not to destroy anything, and don't make a spectacle of yourselves. Try to remain discreet." Pein told them, "This is hopefully the only time we'll have to do this."

"Yeah, hopefully." Hidan glared at the blonde.

"Go to Hell." Deidara snapped.

"I'll meet you there."

"If you keep it up, neither of you will be coming." Pein warned.

Neither of them said anything more.

"Good, the four of you can go wherever you'd like to eat. We'll be going to the Italien restaurant. I expect you all to be back here in, at the most, two hours."

"Yes, sir."

Kakuzu, Hidan, Sasori, and Deidara left the clearing, arguing about where they would eat. Pein rolled his eyes and turned his eyes on his own dining companions. Kisame was oddly quiet, but he paid it no heed, and Konan seemed happy to be going out to eat. Itachi, who was being held by Konan, also seemed quite pleased at the prospect of eating elsewhere. It was different, because Pein knew that had this been the adult Itachi, he would have refused to go out to eat with them. He would have stayed behind, telling Kisame to go without him.

People changed, Pein concluded.

The four made their way to the Italien restaurant that was in the market that they went to to get whatever they needed. It was small and wasn't very busy, but the food was delicious. They entered the restaurant and waited to be seated. A woman arrived and she smiled at them in greeting.

"Hello! Three adults, one child?" She asked, her eyes going over the four of them.

Konan smiled, "Yes." She answered the woman.

She grabbed four menu's and led them to a small booth. Konan let Itachi sit with Kisame, and she sat down next to Pein. The woman put down their menu's and told them the waitress would be right with them. She then went back to the front door to wait for more costumers.

"It's nice to go eat out every once in a while." Konan commented.

"I suppose." Pein agreed hesitantly. He didn't mind going out to eat, but it was the fact that they had no other choice than to do so that bothered him. He'd meant to send Hidan back out for some groceries, but he'd found cleaning the base to be of more importance.

They ordered their drinks, and afterwards their food. It was all brought to them quickly. There wasn't much talking between them. As they quietly ate their food, only Itachi seemed surprised, and frightened, by the rather large earthquake. He took a strong hold Kisame's arm and looked at him with worry clear on his face.

"What was that, senpai?" He asked. Itachi looked out of the window that they were seated next to, and saw nothing.

Kisame laughed. He pulled his arm out of Itachi grip and patted him on the head gently, "It's just Deidara. It was pretty much expected that he'd detonate one of his bombs."

"I knew I shouldn't of sent him out with Hidan." Pein said, continuing to eat as if nothing happened, Konan doing the same. The only reason he'd done that at all is because he'd wanted a quiet dinner, and Konan had really wanted to eat with Itachi. She didn't trust, 'a bunch of guys' as she'd put it, to take good care of him. Honestly, Pein agreed with her on that count.

"It better not be one of the good restaurants." Kisame said.

Realizing the earthquake was no big deal, despite the fact that most of the other customers were freaking out, Itachi also continued to eat. The rest of the meal passed by with no more disturbances, whatever that had upset Deidara must of been settled with that one explosion. Pein left some money on the table and they exited the restaurant, very well fed.

For once Itachi asked to be put on the ground and he walked ahead of them, stopping every once in a while to pick up a flower or some grass, and throw it in the wind. Kisame watched him with a smile, glad to see he was enjoying himself. Itachi stopped suddenly after walking for a short amount of time, and he was looking off into the distance.

"Is that because of Deidara-senpai?" He asked, pointing at a grey cloud of smoke that was a few yards away.

"Definitely." Konan replied, rolling her eyes. She couldn't believe his immaturity, but she couldn't keep back her smile either. She had to respect his passion for his art.

Itachi took a hold of Kisame's hand, his small hand being entirely hidden by the much large one, and he looked up at the fishman as they continued to walk, "Deidara-senpai's favorite word is bang!" He giggled softly.

"Art is a bang afterall." Kisame grinned at the use of the blonde's favorite phrase.

"Yes." Itachi agreed, smiling up at his partner, "What's your favorite word?"

Kisame thought long and hard about that, before choosing one he thought almost appropriate, though he didn't think Itachi would understand it, "Well, it's actual a phrase a friend of mine told me a long time ago...It goes something like this, '_We don't know what kind of people we truly are until the moment before our deaths. As death comes to embrace you, you will realize what you are. That's what death is, don't you think_'?"

Itachi looked up at the sky, seemingly deep in thought. Since they were walking behind them, the look that Pein and Konan shared at the words went unseen by them. Itachi looked back at Kisame, his face bright with fascination.

"I think I understand! It makes sense! Do you think it makes sense?" He asked.

"Nobody's really going to know until they're facing death. But, I have to say it does seem logical." Kisame replied.

"'_That's what death is, don't you think?_'" Itachi repeated Kisame's last words, "I don't like death. Do you want to know what my favorite word is?"

Kisame could barely hide his joy at the question. It would be the first time Itachi would willingly tell him something he liked, and he smiled down at the child who obviously wanted to tell him, "I'd love to know what your favorite word is."

"Peace. My favorite word is peace. It's such a pretty word! It means such a nice thing too. When there is peace, everybody is happy and everybody love's each other. My mother says peace is when the world is in harmony. I like that." Itachi's eyes shined as he spoke of peace, and Kisame was openly shocked.

Konan smiled softly, "Peace..." She whispered.

"Peace." Pein repeated.

"Peace! What a great word to chose." He let the wind carry his words, not sure if Itachi heard him or not. But the child seemed too lost in his innocent thoughts to care to listen.

Peace. Spoken as if it were the most powerful word in the world. Spoken as if it were the most fragile word in the world.

* * *

AN: Hello!

I'm going to tell you guys why I chose Pulmonary Edema, as I'm sure somebody's like 'wtf?'. Well, I'd really wanted to put a name to whatever Itachi has, and I'm sure it's something lung/heart related. So I searched that up along with his symptoms, and this was the first thing I found. As I don't like looking through medical stuff (Freaks me out...) I just took that one. I found it fit anyways!

I hope you enjoyed the chapter! (Yes, Itachi's favorite word is peace! I read it in the databook! And the thing Kisame says at the end? If you're following the manga you'll know. But if not, it's something that Itachi tells him when they first become partners. It was an interesting conversation...)

Anywho's, thank you for reading!  
Please review!  
-MewMew


	7. Dedara Woke

**Chapter 7 - Deidara Woke**

Deidara woke the child up hesitantly. He didn't look very good. He was curled up in a small ball, his face red, and he was coughing in his sleep. Deidara put a hand to the child's forehead to feel the temperature, and though he wasn't good at knowing when it was too hot or not, he knew without a doubt that the kid had a fever. Deidara touched his shoulder and shook him gently, trying not to scare him out of sleep.

"Itachi...Please wake up, yeah."

He'd burst into the room, turning on the light, and talking loudly, but the kid hadn't even stirred. He doubted this gentle wake up call would do any good. He was right. The child didn't show any signs of waking up. His breathing was heavy and ragged, as if breathing was too difficult. Deidara wanted to go find Kisame for some help, but he was afraid of leaving Itachi alone in case he suddenly stopped breathing.

It was Kisame's turn to make breakfast and he'd asked Deidara to go get Itachi. He probably hadn't been expecting Itachi to be sick at all.

He started pacing the room, his thoughts going a mile a minute. He had no idea what to do. Luckily he was saved the task of choosing something when the door opened to reveal Kisame. He'd gotten worried about the time it was taking and had chosen to come take a look for himself. For once, Deidara was glad about Kisame's protectiveness of Itachi.

"Thank God you're here, yeah!" Deidara exclaimed in a relieved tone.

"What's taking you so long?" Kisame's eyes went over to his sick partner, and hurried to the bed. He knelt next to it, and put a hand on Itachi's shoulder and gently shook him, "What...?" He asked to no one in particular.

"He was like that when I got here. He's really sick and I don't know what to do, yeah."

Settling on a course of action, Kisame turned to Deidara, "Listen, and listen closely. I want you to go finish breakfast. If anyone asks why we're not eating, make up an excuse. Don't tell them Itachi's sick. When you see Sasori, tell him to come here. Got it?"

Deidara looked confused by the orders but nodded, "Um, okay, yeah." With one last look at the child, he left the room.

Kisame looked at his partner. He knew this wasn't caused by anything, it was just one of his fits. There was nothing he could do, but he was hoping that Sasori would be able to figure something out. He got up and with a final look to make sure Itachi was breathing, he left the room and went to the bathroom. He soaked a rag in cold water, and brought it back to Itachi's bedroom. He put it on the child's forehead. That much he knew about helping a fever go down.

He sat on the floor, still high enough to see over the bed, and stared at the kid intently. Hoping with all his might that those usually dark and cold eyes would open. He talked to Itachi, though he knew the kid probably couldn't hear him.

"Come on, kid. Wake up...It's another nice day, you don't want to miss it. We could go to Zetsu's greenhouse, and you could look at all the flowers and plants he has. I'm sure he'd love to tell you all about them. You like flowers, don't you? You still have the one Deidara gave you. And you also like peace, right? And strawberries, and pocky, and hot spas, and reading fiction stories, and painting your nails, and cats, and..." That's when Kisame realized just how well he knew his teammate. He always complained that Itachi never told him anything, but when it came down to it, Itachi did tell him. In his own way. With hints, and suggestions, Itachi made the things he liked known without actually saying it.

"And butterflies." Itachi said with a cough. Though his eyes weren't open, he seemed to of been awake long enough to of heard him talking.

"Yes, and butterflies." Kisame smiled at him, even if he couldn't see it.

"And you, and Konan-chan, and Deidara-senpai, and Hidan-senpai, and Sasori-senpai, and Kakuzu-senpai, and Leader-sama, and Zetsu-senpai, and Tobi-senpai." Itachi forced out, coughing after almost every word.

"Yes, and we all like you to." Kisame took the wet rag and wiped it accross the red cheeks, hoping to cool him down a little more. Itachi smiled at the words, and he tried to open his eyes.

"Can...Can you turn off the light? It hurts my eyes..." Itachi asked.

"Of course." Kisame got up, put the rag on the dresser, and went to the door, "I'll be back in a minute." He left the room and came back in a few short moments with a lantern in hand. He turned it on, and closed the bedroom light. The light from the lantern was much less bright and hurtful than the original light was.

"Thank you."

Kisame knelt next to the bed, "How do you feel?" He asked when Itachi opened his eyes to look at him.

"I'm just a little bit sick, but it'll go away. It always does." Kisame grimaced at the words, knowing just how wrong they were.

"Itachi...I don't know how to tell you this, but what you have is a little bit more serious than that. It's not going to go away." Kisame spoke hesitantly, worried about upseting the child. He'd wanted Sasori to tell him, but he thought maybe Itachi would prefer hearing it from him.

To his surprise, Itachi sighed, "I know."

Kisame stared at him in shock, "What?"

"I have a desease. It's called Pul...Pul-something-"

"Pulmonary Edema." Kisame spoke grimly.

"Yes, that. Mother and father have taken me to the doctors because of it a lot. He gives me medicine to take, and tells me everything's going to be alright. That's what mother and father tell me too. But it's not true."

"But you will be alright, Itachi!" Kisame tried to be optimistic. He saw that the child had given up all hope of being a healthy child, "If you take your medicine, you'll be fine. Even Sasori says so." He thought that knowing that Sasori thought he'd be alright would get Itachi to think so too. He was wrong.

"It's not true. Everybody lies to make me feel better. Mother and father tell me I'll be alright, that I can live a normal life, but then...But then I listen to them talk when they don't think I'm listening. Mother cries. She says I'm going to die. This thing is going to kill me and there's nothing anybody can do about it."

"Itachi..." Kisame put the back of his hand against Itachi's cheek in a comforting manner.

"I'm going to die, senpai. I don't want to die. It hurts so much and, and I can't breathe much but still...I don't want to die. Why can't I be like the other kids, senpai? Healthy and average. I don't want to be sick, I don't want to be a genius, I just want to be normal. I want to live." Itachi cried, and his whole body shook, but he didn't make a sound. He wept silently.

Kisame wiped away the child's tears, "You will live, Itachi. If you really believe, you will. Come here." His own voice was trembling a little because of his worry for his partner's health. Kisame reached under the child, and pulled him into his arms. Itachi willingly let himself be taken out of the bed. The fishman sat with his back against the bed, and put the child in his lap. He wrapped his arms around the child's small frame and held him close, resting his chin on the others head. "Tell me, Itachi, tell me more things that you like."

"I like...I like..." His mind was clouded in sadness, but the command brought back a ray of positivity, and the tears came slower, "I like rabbits, and music, and birds, and chocolate, and going to the beach, and going shopping, and reading with Kakuzu-senpai, and talking with Hidan-senpai, and making pretty swans." Itachi looked up at Kisame for approval of the things he named.

Though he was pleased that this seemed to bring Itachi out of his saddened mood, Kisame couldn't help but realize that the things he named were about the time he'd spent with them in the last five days. He didn't even mention his own parents, and it upset him how much of a lack of affection there was in Itachi's childhood.

Itachi's voice was still raspy and sounded as if he were forcing himself to breathe. His fever still felt really high, and he yawned, showing he was still really tired.

"Those are all great." Kisame would have said more, but stopped when the door to the bedroom opened. Sasori strode into the room. "Thanks for coming, Sasori."

Sasori just nodded, and knelt in front of the two of them, "You're not feeling very well, are you kid?" He asked. Itachi didn't say anything. Sasori put a hand on his forehead to feel his temperature, and labelled it as 'too high'. He put his hands on the child's chest right above his lungs, and they started to glow a soft green colour, "Take a really deep breath for me, and let it go slowly." He told him.

"Okay..." Itachi obliged to the best of his abilities. When he took his 'deep breath' he wasn't able to take in much oxygen, too much of it made him dizzy, and it hurt his lungs. As he tried to breathe it out slowly as was asked, he started to cough. Once it was over, he looked at the puppetman guiltily, "I'm sorry, it didn't work very well." He apologized.

"Don't worry about it, I got what I needed." Sasori drew back his hands, "We'll have to go to my workroom. I'll be able to help him there."

Kisame stood up, taking Itachi with him, "As long as he gets better, we'll go wherever you want us too." He said.

"Follow me then."

Sasori led them to his workroom. They didn't see anyone on the way there, for which they were thankful. They all wanted to keep this a secret, for as long as possible at least. When they entered the room, Sasori had Itachi sit on the desk. It would be easier to treat him if they were face to face. Itachi and Kisame watched Sasori bustle around the room collecting the things he would need. Which included a small pot, some papers, a couple bottles of medicine, and a handkerchief.

Putting the items next to Itachi on the desk, he began treating his very sick patient. He checked his pulse, frowning at the very slow pumping After he scribbled the number of times his heart beat in a minute on one of the sheets of paper, he turned to glare at Kisame. The fishman had been pacing behind him for the last couple minutes.

"You're bothering me. I want you to leave the room."

"I'll stop walking, I'll just stay over there and you won't even know I'm here." Kisame tried to reason.

"You'll be fretting the entire time, you can stay out in the hall if you like, but you can't stay in the room."

"I am _not_ fretting."

Sasori's glare remained.

"I suppose you're right. I'll go find a distraction or something...He'll be fine, right?"

"Yes."

Itachi tugged weakly on Sasori's cloak to get his attention, "But...But I want him to stay here..."

"It's okay, Itachi, I won't be far." Kisame said, smiling softly.

"But...But I, I'm scared..." The fear was clear in his eyes. He'd spent so much of his childhood going to see doctors to always receive bad news, that the idea of getting another exam done made him nervous and frightened.

"You'll be alright, I promise." Kisame gave the child a quick hug, "You trust Sasori-senpai, right?" He looked at Itachi expectantly.

He looked up at the puppeteer, then back at Kisame, and nodded, "Yes..." His voice was soft, already knowing he was going to lose this battle.

"I'm going to be helping you. When you leave here I promise you'll feel ten times better." Sasori added.

Itachi looked down at the floor, and didn't say anything else.

"I'll go to the kitchen, go see what Deidara's doing. Just so you know though, Itachi already knows everything." Kisame felt the need to mention the fact that Itachi was already aware of his sickness.

"As in, what we discussed yesterday?" Sasori looked at Itachi, who continued to stare at the floor.

"Yes, he's been to the doctors before, and his parents told him most of it." Kisame explained.

"I see..." He kept his gaze on the child. He wondered what he could be thinking. To know he was sick at such a young age, to know that he would never live a normal life. It musn't be easy.

"I'll be in the kitchen if you need me." Kisame said and left the room.

Sasori grabbed the small pot and handed it to Itachi, "Hold this in your hands." He directed. Itachi slowly looked up. He grabbed the offered item and stared at it. "When you have Pulmonary Edema, there's some liquid that accumulates in your lungs. That's what's making it hard to breathe for you right now. I'm going to use my chakra to push that liquid upwards, and when it's in your mouth, spit it in the pot."

Itachi nodded, staring at him uneasily, "Is it going to hurt?"

"You're lungs are swollen, so you'll feel an initial discomfort, but it won't hurt, and it won't last very long. Are you ready?" When he received a nod in confirmation, he put his hands on Itachi's chest again. Once the green glow returned around his hands, he started sending some chakra into the lungs. He made his chakra envelope the liquid, and forced it out of the lungs and towards the mouth. He saw Itachi bite his bottom lip because of the pain it caused against his swollen lungs, but made no sound.

After a few more seconds, Itachi spat a couple ounces of red liquid into the pot. Sasori gave him the handkerchief to wipe away the few traces of blood remaining on his lips. He grabbed the pot and put it aside, and he watched Itachi. There was a noticeable change in his breathing, and the fever went down a little, though he had something to get rid of it completely. Sasori was pleased to hear the smooth breathing again, and smiled at his job well done.

"Now, I have just a few directions to give you then you can go see Kisame. I have some medicine I want you to take, and it'll help make you feel better. The first one is just to get rid of the fever, you only have to take it this morning. These other two are to help with the Pulmonary Edema. You have to take both of them in the morning with breakfast, and also both of them at super time. These two must be taken every day. I'll be telling Kisame too, so that he'll remind you if ever you forget. I know it looks like a lot, but it's going to help."

"I already have medicine." Itachi told him.

"I don't want you taking those anymore, alright? Only the ones I give you." Sasori opened each of them, took one pill, and closed them up again. "I'll put these in your room for you later. Right now, we're going to go to the kitchen and get you a glass of water so that you can take these."

Itachi shot the pills in Sasori's hand a disgusted look, "Do I really have to?" He was truly tired of taking medicine.

"If you want to stay healthy, you have to take them."

Ignoring the child's pout, Sasori picked him up off the desk, and started walking to the kitchen. They found both Kisame and Deidara in the kitchen. The last of the french toast were being cooked by the latter, while the former just watched. They both looked at Sasori and Itachi as they walked in.

"Hey, yeah!" Deidara greeted brightly, seeing that Itachi looked better.

Sasori put the child on one of the seats lining the island, and went to get him a glass of water. Kisame immediately sat next to him and smiled down at him, "You look much better now."

Itachi smiled back, "I can breathe good now! Thank you very much, Sasori-senpai." He thanked him as he took the small glass of water, and the pills, offered to him by the puppetman. Putting all three of them in his mouth, he drank some water, and swallowed them all.

"You shouldn't take them all at the same time like that." Sasori scolded him.

Deidara approached them and crossed his arms on the counted, "So, what's with all the medicine? What's wrong with him, yeah?" He asked.

"It's nothing to worry about." Kisame replied.

"Oh, come on! Why can't I know, yeah?" Deidara didn't like being left out of things, especially secrets.

Itachi stared at the three of them one after the other, and chose to speak up, "It's just that my breathing stuff don't work well and the medicine is to make it better." He replied to the best of his knowledge of the desease.

Kisame looked at him in surprise, not believing that he opened up so readily about his sickness.

"His lungs are swollen and don't work like they should. It lets liquid go into the places where oxygen should be, making it hard for him to breathe. Since it's closely related to heart problems, that's what one of the pills are for, the other one is a diuretic pill, also known as a water pill. The third one was for his fever." Sasori further explained it, seeing as Itachi didn't seem to mind discussing it, and Deidara was confused.

"Well, that really sucks." They'd been expecting Deidara to say this, but surprisingly, it wasn't. They looked at the kitchen entrance to see Hidan. He strode towards them, "But I thought those problems were for old people, not kids."

"Everybody can be effected by this." Sasori said.

Hidan stared at the child, but didn't say anything else.

"I'll call the others to breakfast, yeah." Deidara just went to the entrance of the kitchen and yelled the word 'breakfast' out at the top of his lungs.

Suddenly, Kisame thought of something to ask the child. He didn't know why, but a question he really wanted to know the answer to popped up in his head, and he just had to ask it. He turned to Itachi and asked, "Itachi, when you're older, what do you want to be?"

The others froze, and stared at the child, all wanting to hear his answer to Kisame's sudden question.

Itachi tilted his head in confusion, "What do I want to be when I'm older?" He repeated the question, and thought hard about an answer. Coming up with the perfect answer, his face brightened, and he smiled at his partner, "I want to be happy!"

Deidara felt like he'd woken up from a long slumber. Happy. As if it were the simplest thing in the world. Happy, though, is something he realized Itachi wasn't going to be. He wasn't going to grow up and be happy like his young self seemed to want. He, and though he didn't know it, the other members of the Akatsuki, hated the fact that they couldn't do anything to change that. Whatever would make Itachi happy as an adult would probably take away somebody elses happiness, meaning he would never seek it out. Why?

Because Itachi was truly, and whole heartedly, selfless.

* * *

AN : Hello! I apologize for taking longer than usual to put this out! It's not much of a chapter, but I hope you liked it.

Thank you for reading!  
-MewMew


	8. Zetsu Watered

**Chapter 8 - Zetsu Watered**

Zetsu watered his plants, humming softly to himself, and thinking about that morning. When he'd arrived for breakfast, everybody seemed a bit different. Of course, as a ninja specialized in spying, he knew that the reason everybody was weird was because they all knew now of Itachi's sickness and were trying to figure out how to cope with it. They all seemed to care for the child to a certain level, and at the very least, they all respected him as a very powerful shinobi. To learn that he was sick threw them all off guard.

He chuckled at the thought that when Itachi returned to normal, he would be very displeased to realize that everybody knew that he was sick. The way news travelled in the Akatsuki was efficient and quick. Kisame had told Pein at the very begining a bit about the sickness, and he in turn told Konan. Sasori had actually treated him, with Kakuzu's help. Sasori then told Deidara, and was eavesdropped on by Hidan. And he, Zetsu, had been told by Madara who had figured it out for himself.

Zetsu wondered what else the Uchiha would think upon returning to his adult self. Would he remember everything? Or would all be forgotten? Would things return to normal once he was? Or would there be a permanent change in the Akatsuki? The only thing Zetsu was certain of though, was that Itachi wouldn't be allowed many secrets anymore. The others, he was sure, would pester him for the truth. And maybe, if Itachi remembered what they'd done for him, he would give it to them.

Taking care of his greenery was one of his favourite things to do. He wasn't a ninja, he was just a spy. And because of that, he had quite a lot of free time on his hands. Plants was probably his passion, as the other members had theirs. Pein his ruling, Konan her paper swans, Kakuzu his money, Hidan his religion, Deidara his bombs, Sasori his puppets, Madara his fighting, Kisame taking care of Glinda, and Itachi...His passion was, from what he knew, peacemaking. A surprising passion for a ninja, but it was something none the less.

As he was nearly finished, he sensed Kisame and the child coming towards his greenhouse. He remembered Kisame mentioning that they would be stopping by sometime that day. Another thing Zetsu loved to do was show off his plants, and he was glad that they had wanted to come see his. He put down his watering can and went to greet them at the entrance of the small glass building that contained all his plants.

"Hey, Zetsu!" Kisame said, as he pushed open the door to enter the greenery. Itachi was walking next to him, holding his hand.

"Good morning, Kisame, Itachi." He greeted them.

"Good morning, Zetsu-senpai!" Itachi smiled up at the plantman, all signs of being sick gone.

"**It's time to teach you a little something about plants. **They're all such nice shades of green, don't you think?"

They spent the better part of the day in the greenery, listening to Zetsu talk about his plants and how to take care of them and what they could be used for. It was obvious that the plantman was really enjoying himself. He'd shown his greenery to very few people, and they were usually very uncaring and boring. But he liked talking to Itachi about them because he was enthusiastic about learning and fascinated by everything.

He listened carefully and asked questions that Zetsu was happy to answer. Kisame followed behind as they went through the different rows within the small building, he had already gotten the tour, and didn't really much care about plants. He was glad though that Itachi was having fun. Even he didn't notice how quickly the time had gone by, and soon enough he took note of the time.

"We have to head inside, we have to go make supper." Kisame interrupted them. He was wondering how much longer they would have spent talking if he hadn't intervened. Probably a really long time.

"Already?" Itachi looked at him, surprised. He was tempted to stay and continue, but he also wanted to go help Kisame make supper. He figured he could always come back another time.

They made their way to the exit of the greenery, and Itachi turned to Zetsu with a bright smile, "Thank you very much for showing me your pretty plants, Zetsu-senpai!"

"**No problem, kid.** Come back whenever you like." Zetsu patted the child on the head.

Kisame and Itachi left the greenery and made their way back to the base. They walked slowly, although they should have already started supper. The others would just have to wait.

"This was really fun, thank you for bringing me." Itachi thanked Kisame. He was walking next to the other, holding his hand again.

"I thought you'd like it. What was your favourite flower?"

"The daisy." He replied.

"Oh? Why's that?" Kisame was intrigued. It was one of the more simple and bland flowers of the bunch, and he'd thought Itachi might like something with a little more colour.

"It's the kind of flower Deidara-senpai gave me! It's really pretty." Itachi smiled up at his partner.

"Yeah, it is." Kisame agreed, grinning. Of course Itachi would chose the flower that had a special meaning to him.

They entered the hideout and went to the kitchen. The base was aired out from the previous day, but there were still patches of black every here and there. It would take a month before the entire base was spotless. But at least now they could eat in the dining room without fear of being intoxicated by the smoke.

"What are we going to make for supper?" Itachi asked the fishman.

"We'll be making some curry. It's easy, quick, and delicious."

Kisame pulled out the things they would need and set them up on the counter. He turned on the stove and put the large kettle on the heating round. He put some water in it, and waited for it to boil. He turned to Itachi who had been watching him walk around from the begining. He picked up the child and sat him on the counter so that he could see what he was doing.

"Now, you see these?" He pointed to the ingredients on the counter, "All of them will be going into the kettle."

"Why?"

"It makes it taste better." Kisame answered the question though he was surprised by it. He always figured that to be obvious, "Have you ever cooked with your parents before?"

"Mother says that men shouldn't be in the kitchen, and that cooking is the woman's job. But I don't understand why." Itachi replied.

Kisame laughed, "Well, your mother seems to be stuck in the ancient times. Before, women were to stay at home to help with the kids and to cook and clean, and the men worked to support the family. But that's not how it is anymore. Men and women work equally now. It's a good thing too. I've fought some pretty wicked kunoichi in my life."

"But why was it like that?"

"I don't know. Things used to be really different but now everything's slowly moving forward towards a good world."

"A world with peace?"

"Yeah, a world with peace." Kisame felt bad lying to the kid, but knew it was the only way not to upset him. He knew that the world would never know peace. There was just no such thing in a world full of fighters and killers. He turned towards the ingredients and begun to teach Itachi the simple recipe of curry.

Within a half hour the meal was ready and Kisame called the members to supper. They all sat down in their usual places, and began eating. As said, it was quite delicious. The conversations were more lively than usual, everybody seemingly in a good mood. All of them shot the child anxious glances, but he didn't notice. It didn't need to be done though, for Itachi was fine now.

After the food was eaten and the dishes cleared away, Zetsu went with Pein and Konan into the Leader's office. He had something to discuss with them. Once the door was closed behind them and nobody could hear them, Zetsu pulled out a small scroll from his cloak.

"For the past few days I've noticed a couple different sound ninja in the viscinity. I kept an eye on them but they weren't there to attack, only to gather information. This morning I noticed that they were about to send away this scroll, and I knew it would be best not to let it get away. Tobi was with me and fought them. They've been properly disposed of. **I read the scroll. The brat seems to have quite a few admirers.**" Zetsu said.

"It's about Itachi?" Konan asked, taking the scroll. She read it silently.

"Yes. **Orochimaru wants more details on the transformation**."

"Sasori told us that Orochimaru would be keeping tabs on the kid, but I didn't think he'd be so persistent." Pein said. According to Sasori, the sannin would want to know the full details of the jutsu he'd had performed on Itachi. To know if it had been successful or not. Sasori's only explanation for them having attacked the kid and Hidan was that Orochimaru had tricked the two ninja. Saying he wanted to kidnap the kid, but really just wanting to see if Itachi could fight.

"I don't believe it's anything to be worried about, **I just thought you might like to know.**"

"No, we don't need to be worried about it. The jutsu is supposed to wear off soon, and when Orochimaru sees that Itachi is back to normal, he'll leave him alone, I'm sure." Konan rolled up the scroll and handed it to Pein, who put it in the depths of his cloak. He would read it later.

"Thank you, Zetsu, you're dismissed." Pein said, and the plantman disappeared through the floor with a simple 'farewell'. He went to sit at his desk and Konan followed him.

"I'm worried about Itachi." She said.

"What do you mean?" He pulled out some papers and started writting on them, paying her very little attention.

"He's not going to like everybody knowing about his weak point."

"And? That's perfectly normal."

"I think we should do something to let him know that though we know he's sick, we don't think any less of him. It doesn't make him weak. I think that he didn't want to tell anyone because he thought that's what we'd think." Konan explained.

Pein stood up from his seat, and looked at her, a blank look on his face, "Konan, first off, Itachi didn't tell anybody because he doesn't like attention. He doesn't like people worrying about him, just like you are now. And the second thing, if you truly want to do something for him, treat him the way you always have. Show him that nothings changed even though we know he's sick. He'll appreciate that the most I should think."

"But things have changed, Pein. We finally listened to what he had to say, and we all realized a thing or two because of him. Even you have, he's reminded us why we started the Akatsuki. For peace. To fight for what we believe in. I think this has all changed us for the better, and Itachi should know it's because of him."

"Konan...He doesn't want recognition for his actions. He just wants to know that something came from them." Pein shook his head and made his way out of the room, leaving Konan to think.

* * *

AN: Hello! Here's chapter eight. It's really, really short, and there's not much going on here. Since Zetsu's character still isn't very developped in the manga I find him difficult to write. And as I reread this I noticed that I made this chapter very fast moving, and I'm sorry about that. I just don't like filling in blanks with pointless things. I hope you enjoyed the chapter none the less!

Thanks for reading!  
Please review!  
-MewMew


	9. Kisame Saw

**Chapter 9 - Kisame Saw**

Kisame saw a change in Itachi. When they ate breakfast that morning he watched him talking excitedly with Konan, and realized that it wasn't the same shy child that had been sitting in that seat only six days before. He'd grown comfortable in their presence, feeling as if he belonged. Something that the adult Itachi had never been able to do. The way he talked with all of them, no trace of fear towards the most feared people in the nations.

Although, Itachi didn't know that part.

Sasori asked to see Itachi after the meal to have some final tests done on him, and Itachi had no problems agreeing to it. He was no longer afraid of the person he had given the title of 'doctor' to. Because he trusted him, something Kisame noticed, he didn't do often. Itachi didn't trust people, and the fishman held pride in knowing that Itachi had at least some amount of trust in him.

Once the meal was done, the members dispersed in all directions. Kisame stayed in the kitchen to help Deidara do the dishes.

"Did Sasori tell you why he wanted to check the kid, yeah?" Deidara asked Kisame, begining his task of drying the dishes, while the latter washed them.

"Nope, but I'm sure he'll tell us later."

"Yeah..."

"What is it?"

"Oh? Nothing, just thinking, yeah."

"Well, don't hurt yourself there blondie." Kisame grinned at him to show he was joking, though still earning himself a snarky comback.

"Fuck you fishstick, yeah." He said, using Hidan's nickname for him.

Kisame just laughed, "But seriously, what are you thinking about?"

"I'm just wondering if...If Itachi's going to remember all this whenever he returns to normal, yeah."

"Hm, that's a good question, but I have no answer. Do you want him to remember?"

"He seems happy, and it's always good to have happy memories, yeah." Deidara said as his reply.

"Hey fucktards!" An overjoyed Hidan greeted them, entering the kitchen area.

Kisame quirked an eyebrow and stared at the Jashinist, "Why're you so happy?" He was used to seeing Hidan angry, and wondered why the sudden mood change.

"I've got a mission bitches! Finally!" He raised his left hand into the air, the one holding his scythe. He didn't really do the room height to his scythe length ratio, for it went straight through the ceiling. Without even a second glance, he pulled his weapon out of the ceiling.

"About damned time, yeah." Deidara mumbled, turning back to the dishes.

"Just don't get beheaded this time. Hearing you yelling out curses at Kakuzu for days when you return isn't fun for anybody." Kisame also continued the task of washing the dishes.

"Tch, not like I do it on purpose." Hidan grumbled.

"When are you leaving, yeah?" Deidara asked, his tone hopeful.

"Later tonight." Hidan didn't sound all that pleased at the prospect of having to wait so long.

"Damn." Deidara said loud enough for the other to hear.

"Yeah, well, it's not my choice. I'd leave now, but Kakuzu wants to wait until tonight. The fucking old geezer just wants to finish his money counting. The bastard. Making me wait longer than necessary."

Suddenly, Kakuzu appeared in the doorway, "If you have nothing better to do than pester these two, you can fix the ceiling. Everythings where it usually is." He nodded his head in greeting to the other two, then left the room. He had somewhere else he needed to be.

With a couple curses, Hidan exited the room also. He went to the closet down the hall, grabbed what he would need to fix the hole, and returned to the kitchen with them. He'd done enough holes throughout the hideout that he had become pretty expert at repairing them. The room was silent as he repaired the hole and the other two finished the dishes.

Once the dishes were done, the two agreed to take Itachi outside to show him Deidara's art, seeing as he hadn't had the chance to see it yet. They went to retrieve the child in Sasori's workroom. When they entered the room, the two were talking, having already finished the tests.

"I was just about to send him to you." Sasori commented.

Itachi jumped off the desk where he had been seated, and ran over to Kisame. He grabbed his hand, and smiled at him, "Sasori-senpai let me look at my blood! It was really gross."

"I showed him the samples because he was really curious to know what it looked like." The puppetman explained upon noticing Kisame's uncertain expression.

"Itachi, do you want to come outside with us, yeah? I'm going to show you my art, yeah!" Deidara told the child, his own face holding a childlike joy at the mention of his art.

"I'd love to!" Itachi's face mimicked Deidara's joy, and the two adults could only smile.

They started leaving the room, and Kisame turned to Sasori, "Are you coming with us?" He asked.

Sasori shook his head, "I can't. I have to take a look at these." He gestured to the blood samples.

"If you change your mind, you know where to find us." Kisame said, and the three of them left Sasori alone to finish his work.

They went outside the base and and walked further away, making sure they were far enough that no bombs would effect the hideout. Deidara, although having had fun testing his bomb, didn't want a repeat of the other day. The other members were still angry with him. Once where they wanted to be, Deidara extended his hand to Itachi, showing him the mouth there. The child looked at it in awe, having not noticed it until that moment.

"This, is what I use to make my art, yeah." He extended his other hand, and the mouth spat out a clump of clay. He formed the clay into a small bird, having Itachi's full attention the entire time. He lifted his hand and the bird flew off into the sky, "And what is art, Itachi? Art is a bang! Katsu!" The bird exploded in the air, and Itachi stared at it wide-eyed. Even Kisame was a bit entranced, although he'd seen it countless times, it was still fun to watch Deidara's works' explode.

"Pretty cool, yeah?" Deidara looked smug.

"Can you do it again?" Itachi stared at the blonde hopefully, obviously thinking it was pretty cool.

"I can do it as many times as I want, yeah!"

And he did. He took more clay and transformed it into his explosive clay, all the while explaining the process to Itachi. He let his creation go up into the sky and he would explode it. He repeated the process, eventually letting the child help him with the sculpting. It was fun having a captivated audience for once.

They made birds, snakes, and spiders until the blonde ran out of clay. By the time that happened, the sun had passed accross the sky and it was nearing time to eat. Deidara let the final bird fly up into the sky, and let it fly around in circles for a while. Itachi watched it soar and smiled in anticipation for the creation's explosion. No matter how many times he watched it happen, he was still just as excited.

With a final 'katsu!' the tiny bird in the sky exploded. The smoke rising up into the sky in a straight line. There had been no wind that day. All three of them stared at the remainder of their fun of the day, one in pride, one in excitement, and the third in fascination. Kisame, the first to return to reality, turned to the other two.

"We should head inside, supper will be just about ready." He said, and they slowly agreed.

Itachi grabbed Kisame's hand and let himself be brought back towards the hideout, but he shot glances back at the spot where the clay sculptures had exploded. The fishman wondered if the child was even listening to Deidara's rant about his art, but chose not to say anything. They were all happy at that moment and he wasn't going to do anything to mess that up.

They entered the hideout, Deidara went to his room, while the other two went to the kitchen. Kisame went to the sink and poured a small glass of water, and turned to the child, holding out the cup, "You have medicine to take." He reminded him.

Itachi wrinkled his nose in disgust, but took the offered item, "Do I have to?" He asked this every time.

"Yes, now hurry up, the food's almost ready." Kisame said, noticing that the plates were being put on the table by Kakuzu.

"Okay..." Itachi pouted, but left the kitchen and went to his room to take his medication.

"You'll have to watch him, you know. He'll skip out on it if he gets the chance." A voice said, and Kisame looked at the kitchen entrance to see Sasori.

"Yeah, I've realized that." Kisame agreed.

"There's a meeting after supper. It's about the brat, so Kakuzu agreed to keep him occupied while we have the meeting." Sasori told him.

"Doesn't he want to know what you have to say?" Kisame asked.

"He already knows."

"It's time to eat, come on." Kakuzu said upon entering the kitchen for the last time. The table was set, and he was getting the members.

All of them gathered around the dining room table and ate their meal. With a bit of light conversation going on between them, it was a peaceful supper. Especially compared to other nights. When they were finished, they all stayed to help clear off the table, stalling time while Kakuzu convinced the child to join him in the living room. Itachi agreed when the other promised to tell him a story, albeit very hesitantly. Kakuzu didn't like telling stories, and he didn't think he had any that would be good for children.

But he knew he had to get Itachi out of there so Sasori could do his meeting, and so promised what needed to be promised. As he and the child exited the room, they all relaxed. They finished cleaning the table before returning to sit around it. Sasori remained standing and waited for everybody else to settle down before explaining the reason for the meeting.

"As most of you know, this morning I took more blood samples from Itachi. I spent today taking a look at them, and what I could see within the blood was the jutsu that was placed on him. The fact that the jutsu has resurfaced means that it's almost finished. The transformation back into his adult-self will be soon. Itachi will be back to normal by tomorrow morning." Sasori told them.

Most of the people at the table just stared at him with uncertain expressions on their faces. The news was so sudden that they weren't really sure what to make of it. Suddenly, Pein chose to break the silence.

"It'll be nice to have everything back to normal once more." He commented.

"Thank Jashin! Now I won't have to watch my language anymore." Hidan said.

"You tried to watch your language, yeah?" Deidara quirked an eyebrow in curiosity.

"Well..."

"It was fun to see him as a child, but you're right. Things need to be done and I need my partner back." Kisame agreed with the Leader.

"Does the transformation hurt?" Konan asked.

"No. He'll go to sleep like normal tonight tonight, and he'll sleep the whole night through. He won't even notice it." Sasori replied.

"Is he going to remember anything tomorrow morning, yeah?"

"I can't say anything for sure. But, he's only three so the chances are very slim."

"That might be for the best." Pein said.

"Maybe..." Kisame mused, thinking about what Deidara had told him earlier. Itachi might enjoy having some happy memories to look back on. Memories that didn't surround his parents and little brother.

"You'll need an excuse, **as to why he has no memory of the last week.**" Zetsu pointed out, interrupting the silence that had ensued Kisame's musing.

"I'll figure something out." Kisame said with a shrug. He figured his excuse would be that he'd been sick the entire week, fading in and out of consciousness. Itachi would probably believe him, and if not, he wouldn't question any further.

Pein stood up from his seat, "If he doesn't remember, try to keep it that way. Pretend it never happened. Things must return to normal."

Konan stifled a glare, and followed him out of the kitchen. His leaving the room meant that the meeting was done, and the members took notice of it. Zetsu left the room with a 'farewell', quickly followed by Hidan, who was on his way to find Kakuzu to see if they could leave for their mission. Deidara and Sasori returned to their respective rooms, just trying to pass the time. Kisame also went to find Kakuzu, but he wanted to see the child that was with him.

They, he and Hidan, found Kakuzu and Itachi in the living room. The former was reading a book aloud, and the latter was leaning against him, listening intently. His eyes though, were slowly slipping closed.

"Yo, Kakuzu, when are we leaving?" Hidan asked his partner.

"Later." He replied, and continued to read the words in a whisper, as if it were a story only shared between him and the child.

Hidan's grip tightened on his scythe, but didn't say a word. He knew he couldn't convince or force the other to leave. He glared viciously at his partner, before leaving the room. He would go take out his frustration on the trees surrounding the base.

Kisame joined them on the couch, "How's the book?" He asked.

"It's really good!" Although his voice was thick with sleep, Itachi still managed to sound enthusiastic.

"What's the last thing I said?" Kakuzu chuckled lightly, noticing that the child was almost sleeping.

"Um...'_But now let us descend to greater woe._'" Itachi replied. He opened his eyes and smiled up at Kakuzu, knowing he'd surprised him.

Kakuzu grinned and shook his head. He continued reading, now assured that the kid was actually listening to him. He finished the next couple canto's **(1)**, having the attention of both Itachi and Kisame. The words rolled off his lips effortlessly and in a smooth rythme, never missing a beat. Time slowly melted away from them, and when Kakuzu finally closed his book, the child was fast asleep and Kisame was still captivated by every word.

"I'll put him to bed." Kisame whispered to not wake the sleeping child, but it didn't work. The second Kakuzu finished talking, his dark eyes opened and gazed around tiredly.

"Already?" He mumbled, pulling away from Kakuzu.

"It's getting late." Kakuzu told him.

"Come on." Kisame stood up and looked over at the child. Itachi sat up straight and extended his arms towards Kisame. Without hesitance, he picked up the kid and held him in his arms. In a matter of seconds Itachi had placed himself comfortably and slid his eyes closed. The fishman smiled gently, "I'll come see you later." He told Kakuzu and left the room.

He went into Itachi's bedroom and made him sit on the bed. The child rubbed sleep out of his eyes and looked at Kisame expectantly, "What is it?" He asked, for the fishman began going through the dresser drawers.

Kisame returned to him with clothes in his hands, "I need you to get changed into these." He handed the child the clothing. Although Itachi stared at the clothes curiously, he didn't ask why, for which Kisame was thankful.

He turned around while the kid got changed into the much larger clothes. When Itachi told him he could turn around, Kisame saw the child had folded his yukata, put it on the edge of the bed, and had then crawled into the bed. Itachi stared at him through half-lidded eyes.

"Do I have to go back to mother and father?" He asked, yawning softly. He seemed to have made a link between the too big clothes from his first day there to the ones he was just asked to wear.

"Yeah, everythings all good now. No more war." Kisame replied. He approached the child and tucked him in.

"That means peace, right?"

"Yeah, that means peace." Kisame patted Itachi's head gently, "Sleep tight, kid."

Just as he was about to leave the room, he heard a soft, "Good night, senpai." He smiled to himself, and closed the door softly behind him.

Not knowing really what to do with himself, he went to the dining room. He was surprised to see that he wasn't the only one who had ended up there. Kakuzu had gone there after putting away his book. Sasori had joined him soon after, with Deidara trailing behind. Kisame sat at his spot at the table.

"Hey." He greeted them.

"How's the brat, yeah?" Deidara asked.

"Sleeping." He replied, "What are you guys doing here?"

Sasori shrugged, "Nowhere better to be."

Within a few more minutes everybody ended up finding themselves in the dining room. They all drifted there with no real destination in mind. Nobody had a clue what to do, and so went to the only place they knew the others would be.

"Looks like we're all here." Pein commented upon sitting down. He was the last one to show up.

"Well..." Kisame's gaze drifted over to Itachi's empty seat. Soon, all of them stared at the chair. It was odd not to have Itachi seated there. Of all of them, he was usually the most present.

"I can't believe Orochimaru went through all that trouble to get Itachi. He must of really been stalking him to of known exactly when he was vulnerable." Hidan said. He'd never met Orochimaru, and thus didn't really know just how much Itachi, Sharingan, and immortality meant to him.

"Orochimaru is ready to do anything to get the Sharingan." Konan said.

"It wasn't about the Sharingan this time, though. This was to test his jutsu. Orochimaru wanted to test it, and he chose Itachi just to enact a bit of revenge." Sasori explained.

"He did all this to have a young body again." Kakuzu said.

"All this, **to be young again.**"

"To be young again, yeah." Deidara mused.

And oddly enough, they all had the same thought. The most honest and real thought they'd had in a long time.

'_I'd give anything_.'

* * *

AN: Hello! (1) I made him read the same book 'Inferno', and that book in separated in canto's, not chapters. On another note, there's only one chapter left. This chapter didn't really come out as I would have liked but I hope you enjoyed it anyways!

On a random note, I had a snow day today! Yay! And that's why I'm updating in the middle of the day. The next chappie will be out in a weeks time.

Thanks for reading!  
Please review!  
-MewMew


	10. Itachi Remembered

**Chapter 10 - Itachi Remembered**

Itachi remembered nothing about his week as a child at first. Little flashes would appear to him now and then, but nothing concrete. But he remembered the words he had told Kisame so many years before, words that, at the time, had been merely part of a conversation. Words that now held the truth within them. '_As death comes to embrace you, you will realize what you are. That's what death is, don't you think?_'

The more he thought about those words, the more they began to seem familiar. As if he'd heard them once upon a time, many years ago. And that's when he remembered Kisame telling that same thing to him. When he was young...Merely a child. He didn't understand at first, just letting the memories come to him, trying to make sense of them.

'_Your big brother is here to protect you, no matter what happens.'_

He dodged his brothers attack, hiding behind his last weapon. His most powerful weapon. Susano'o. He was always the protector. Keeping himself safe. Keeping his little brother safe. Keeping his entire village safe. He'd only ever been protected once in his life, and he only remembered that time upon listening to his little brother's words.

'_Watch yourself, kid.'_

_'Hidan-senpai saved me!'_

Hidan. The Jashinist had protected him against Orochimaru's men. On a day, so long ago. So many, many years ago. He could see the grinning face in his mind, and somehow it seemed like a distant memory. But how...He had only met Hidan a couple years before. How...

'_The people here are just angry at the world, kid. And, to tell you the truth, if they're a part of the Akatsuki, it's because they have a reason to be._'

Kakuzu had told him that. Was he angry? Itachi didn't think so, but the more he let the words enter his mind, the more he realized the truth. He was angry. He was angry at his parents for the way they'd raised him, angry at the village for making him do what he'd done, and even at his little brother, for being so important to him. He'd pushed away the anger, but he knew his moments were nearing their last, and he accepted the truth. He was angry, but as Kakuzu said, he had a reason to be. It was the life given to him, and he'd truly had no way of escaping it. The words were true...But when had he been told this?

_'No more arguing.'_

Itachi couldn't begin to guess how many times Pein had said this during his stay at the Akatsuki. Yelling, fighting, arguing, it was part of the anger that resided within all of the members. The same anger within his fellow members could be seen in his little brother's eyes as he talked, more like yelled, at him. Itachi fed Sasuke a few more lies about wanting his eyes, letting that anger go as far as possible. He wanted his little brother's love, but he couldn't have it. Sasuke needed to have pride in his clan. Even though Itachi never did. He stepped slowly towards his vulnerable brother. Susano'o was doing its job, and he in turn, was doing his own. Using his acting abilities to fuel the fear in his brother.

_'You can call me Konan-Chan!'_

He'd never used the suffixe 'chan' in his life. He had no clue where this memory came from. They flashed before his eyes, as he could feel his life disappearing. His strength leaving him. 'Chan'...Is for friends...Was Konan his friend? But he couldn't recall calling her this, or even trying to get to know her in the past few years...Had he dreamt this?

'_**No problem, kid.**__ Come back whenever you like.'_

Zetsu's greenery...He'd always liked that place, although he only remembered going once when Zetsu had insisted. All the different shades of green...It was beautiful. So beautiful. Especially the daisy's.

'_What was your favorite flower?'_

_'The daisy! It's the kind of flower Deidara-senpai gave me! It's really pretty.'_

Daisy's were pretty...Daisy...It was the kind of flower he'd found on his bedside table a day a year before. Almost a complete twelve months. He had stared at it for a long time, not knowing where it came from. When he'd asked Kisame, the fishman had just shrugged it off. But now...He was remembering. Deidara had given it to him. A long time ago. But not a long time ago. His eyes widened upon realizing some of the truth. He didn't know how, but there was a week from his memory that had once been gone, that had now returned. The week after going to Orochimaru's to find the ring. He'd been sick, and the next thing he knew, he woke up a week later to everybody acting a bit oddly around him. Acting kinder towards him, almost. Something happened in sound. Something to bring him back to his childhood.

For how else could his fellow Akatsuki members be in the memories of his youth?

'_How old are you, Itachi-kun?'_

'_I'm three, and I'll be four in two months.'_

The memories of that week he'd spent as a three year old flooded his mind. The way the others had cared for him, treated him like the child he truly was. And not like the genius people expected of him.

'_Why does everyone carry me everywhere?'_

_'We like carrying you.'_

He had been a child, and that's what he'd thought he was for that small amount of time in his past. For that short week, he had been a kid. A kid who'd been allowed to play, laugh, smile, and cry without being reprimanded for doing so. He had been truly normal. Just like everybody else. He had been innocent. For once in his life, truly innocent.

'_Innocence is art, yeah!'_

The great question, what is art? Itachi agreed with his child-self. Art is beauty. There is no more, no less, to it. No matter, wether it goes on forever, or if it is only momentary, it is still beautiful. The beauty of tomorrow, or the beauty of now...The base is the same. Art is beauty. Beauty is art.

He caughed into his hand, seeing the crimson red blood there. His medication wasn't working anymore. There was nothing any medicine could do for him now. He remembered though...When he woke up Sasori had talked to him about his sickness. He'd been angry with Kisame for a long time, feeling almost betrayed by the other. But now he knew. Sasori had figured it out for himself. The fishman had had nothing to do with it.

'_Do I have to?'_

_'If you want to stay healthy, you have to take them.'_

The phrase he'd asked Sasori, in an almost child-like manner upon following their discussion, was now a repeated memory in his mind. He remembered having asked the same thing to the puppetman back in his youth, and receiving the same answer. Every single time he was told to take his medicine he asked if he had to. But he knew he did. He had to. He wanted to die by his brother's hands', and so had to live to get to that point.

'_This thing is going to kill me and there's nothing anybody can do about it.'_

His childish innocence. Only seeing things black and white. Sasori had given him a way to live, surviving only because of the medicine, but surviving none the less. Sasori had been blunt with him.

'_I want you to live through this desease so that you can die like the ninja you are.'_

This is what the puppetman had told him after that week. Had it been before, Itachi didn't think Sasori would have cared how he'd die. He would have been wrong, but he wasn't aware of this, even upon his death. He reflected on the words he'd traded with Kisame on that morning, so long ago, yet not long ago, when he'd woken up as sick as he would continue to be for the rest of his life.

'_I want to live!' _

He had been crying. He had been held by the other, like a child would be held by a parent. He had been allowed to cry. To let everything out for once about the pain of being a sick child. Knowing he was going to die had been a painful weight on his shoulders. Hearing his mother cry though, was the hardest on him.

'_You will live, Itachi.'_

Kisame had sounded so honest, as if he knew the outcome of his life. And in a way, he did. Kisame knew that he would live until at least the age of twenty. Itachi had quickly figured out that everybody knew about his sickness, although nobody besides Sasori spoke of it. He had been angry with Kisame, but the fishman never got upset. No. He was never offended by anything. Kisame had continued to ask him how he felt, never giving up. Itachi had only glared at him for a very long time, only in the past couple months did he start to unload the pain of the desease upon his partner. He'd needed to unload himself, and Kisame had listened without saying a word.

Because Kisame cared about him. Itachi never understood why, but he was forever grateful to him.

'_Moving towards a good world.'_

That's what Kisame wanted, Itachi knew without even being told.

'_A world with peace?'_

That's what everybody wanted. What everybody wants. Peace, even until his dying breath, remained his favorite word. When everybody is in harmony together...That's what peace is. When there is no war, no fighting, no arguing. When everybody can live happily together.

'_Yeah, a world with peace.'_

Although Kisame had lied, he was still thankful.

He wiped away the blood and continued the short distance between himself and his brother. He thought about his old mentor, about the man that had taught him so much, yet had learnt nothing in return. Madara. The man who was ready to destroy the world to get the peace he desired. But that wasn't peace, and Itachi had tried to tell him so. He had been ignored. But he thought back on his short time spent with the other man during his week as a child. And he grew just a little bit fonder of him.

Madara had been holding the child that had stopped him from destroying Konoha in his arms. If the man had chosen to kill him right then and there, everything would have been different. The Uchiha clan would have had no savior, and he could have done whatever he wanted to it and the village. But Madara hadn't. Instead, he had chosen to continue on the path of life that was ahead of him, instead of changing the one behind him. **(1)**

'_Are you happy?'_

No. He hadn't been.

_'I want to be happy!'_

Was he?

He thought about he future. The war that would probably fall upon the world within the following months. He did what he could to prevent it but...

'_War...Is the exception to a lot of rules.'_

Yes, it truly is.

He stepped in front of his shaking brother, the fear obvious in his dark eyes, reflecting the ones staring at him. Itachi felt the love for his brother surface, which he had expected. The happiness they'd had together for the few years of their youth. But that's not all there was in his heart. There was a kind of, appreciation, towards his fellow Akatsuki members. A happiness for the time they had spent together. In his mind, alongisde the picture of him giving his baby brother a piggy-back ride, was a picture of the soot-covered Akatsuki members. And he smiled.

'_Are you happy?'_

Madara's words echoed in his mind.

At that moment, yes, yes he was.

'_You all look silly!'_

The laugh echoing right alongside his mentor's words. As he poked his brother's forehead for the last time, his smile widened. "I'm sorry Sasuke...It ends with this." He fell to the ground, letting the images of his life flash before his eyes.

'_Thank you...My friends.'_

* * *

AN: Hello, for the last time it seems.

(1) I figure that if Madara had killed young Itachi, he would have died at three which would have resulted in the future changing. (Am I making sense?)

I'm aware that this is really not what anybody was expecting. (I'm afraid there obviously won't be a sequel.) I hope you liked it though, even if it is kind of...Out there as a final chapter. I really wanted to get into Itachi's head and this came to me, I figured I'd give it a shot.

I'd intended to put this out at a later date, but I really wanted to put it out! I really, really enjoyed writting this story and I'm so sad to see it end. I'm so surprised by the positive response I've received from this story and I'd like to thank you all for reviewing, favoriting, and alerting! You're the most amazing readers ever!

This is goodbye I guess! Thank you!  
I'd love to know what you all thought of the ending, and wether or not you liked it!

OWARI!  
-MewMew


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